Nurse BSC!
by storylover18
Summary: A flu bug takes it's toll on Stoneybrook and the Baby-Sitters Club. Can they overcome the challenges they face? Please comment! NOW COMPLETE.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter One

**Chapter One**

Beep..._Beep_…_Beep_…_BEEP._ I rolled over lazily and slapped the snooze on my alarm clock. I half-closed my eyes and then I caught glance of the time.

"Oh no!" I cried, jumping out of bed. I ran to the bathroom and quickly took a shower. I rushed back to my room and started rustling through my closet. I found my jeans skirt and a sweater, which I threw on. I quickly did my hair and make-up and then rushed downstairs.

"Morning, Dad."

"Good morning, Mary Anne." said Dad, who was sitting at the kitchen table with a cup of coffee, reading the paper. I sat down with a piece of toast and a banana.

"Did you sleep well?"

"Yeah, although I overslept. Where's Dawn and Sharon?"

Dawn and Sharon are my step-mother and step-sister. My mom died when I was a baby and my dad raised me until I was twelve. Then Dawn's family moved to Stoneybrook, Connecticut, which is where we live. Dawn's mom and my dad had been high school sweethearts, which Dawn and I discovered one rainy afternoon. So we set them up and now they're married.

"Dawn just left because she needed to get to school early for something and Sharon had to leave for work early. Speaking of getting to school, you need to get moving if you don't want to be late."

I looked at my watch and then shoved the rest of my banana into my mouth. I grabbed a container of left-over salad for lunch and then ran out the door.

"Bye Dad!"

"Good-bye Mary Anne. See you this evening." I heard Dad call as I rushed down the front walk. I hurried through the cold all the way to school. I reached the school just as the bell rang and slipped into homeroom without going to my locker. Mr. Blake, my homeroom teacher, started calling role. I sat, trying to catch my breath. Dawn turned around from the seat in front of me.

"Mary Anne, are you okay?"

"Yeah. I just ran a little late this morning. Why?"

"Well, for starters, you have two different colors of eye shadow on, and your sweater is on backwards."

"Is it really?" I cried, a flush creeping up my cheeks. Dawn nodded.

"But it's not that noticeable. The only reason I know is because I bought the sweater for you."

"How bad are my eyes?" I asked, worried.

"Not that bad-one's a light purple, the other a light blue."

"I knew I was running late-"

"Okay girls. Time to focus on _The Red Pony_." Mr. Blake called out. Dawn turned around again and I rooted through my bag and found my copy of the book.

The day didn't get much better as it went on. I forgot my math homework at home, and I didn't have a gym shirt, so I had to wear an old smelly one from the box of spares in the P.E. office.

I sighed as I closed my locker and headed for the cafeteria with my salad. I sat down at my normal table and found Kristy Thomas and Claudia Kishi were already there.

"This is absolutely disgusting." Kristy said, poking the thing on her tray.

"What is it?" Claudia asked, peering at it.

"It's supposed to be Chicken Alfredo. But I think it's a shredded kickball covered with Elmer's' glue."

"Kristy, stop!" I cried. I have a very weak stomach and Kristy's descriptions of school lunches make me want to throw up.

"Okay, okay." Kristy said. I opened up my salad container and found that my salad had wilting leaves and the cherry tomatoes were starting to go bad. I sighed again.

"What's wrong Mary Anne?" asked Dawn, sitting down.

"I'm just having a bad day. First I oversleep, then I miss-match my clothes and makeup, I forgot my math book, and I didn't have a gym shirt. Now my lunch is wilting."

"I'll gladly trade you." Kristy said, offering me a fork of the un-identifiable substance. I glanced down at my salad and decided it wasn't so bad.

"No, but thanks." I started nibbling at my salad.

The rest of the lunch period went quickly and before I knew it, the bell had rung. I got up slowly and headed for the door. As a sea of people pushed me forward, I realized that I hadn't seen my boyfriend, Logan. Sometimes he eats with us, and sometimes he stays and eats with his guy friends. I glanced around, but couldn't see him. I just shrugged and let the mass of people guide me to my locker.

I forgot all about Logan until the end of the day. I headed towards my locker, thankful that the day was over. The afternoon hadn't been as bad as the morning, but it still wasn't great. I had tons of homework. I reached my locker and began doing the combination when I heard my name being called. I looked up and saw Kristy battling her way through people.

"Hi Kristy." I said, still working the lock.

"I just wanted to make sure you were okay. I thought you might like a hug." Kristy hugged me while I just stood there confused.

"Why would I need a hug? I mean, I know I've had a bad day, but it's not _that_ bad."

"So you're not upset about Logan?"

"What? That he didn't eat with us?" I asked, gathering my books and stuffing them into my bag.

"No, that Logan's got some kind of flu bug. He's not even here today."

I stopped what I was doing and looked at Kristy.

"What?"

"Yeah. I heard Austin tell Mr. Zizmore that Logan has some kind of flu bug. I thought you'd know by now."

"I didn't. Poor Logan." I said, trying not to cry. I'm very sensitive and I don't like to see people hurting or sick.

"Are you going to be okay?" Kristy asked me.

"Yeah. Maybe I'll go visit him, if Mrs. Bruno says it's okay."

"That's a good idea. If you see him, tell him the whole BSC says we hope he feels better soon."

"Okay. 'Bye Kristy."

"'Bye. See you at 5:30!" Kristy turned and hurried off down the hall and I slammed my locker door shut. I walked outside and ducked my head against the cold as I hurried home.

Once I got home, I dumped my books on the table and went to the phone. I dialed Logan's number and waited. Mrs. Bruno picked up on the third ring.

"Hello?"

"Mrs. Bruno, its Mary Anne."

"Hello dear. How are you doing?"

"I'm good thanks. How are you?"

"I'm doing fine. Did you want to speak with Logan?"

"Well, actually, I heard at school that he has a flu bug."

"Yes, it's true. A rather nasty one, too."

"Would it be okay if I came to visit him? I wouldn't have to stay long."

"Are you sure you want to, Mary Anne? He's still contagious."

"I'm sure."

"Well, then I'm sure Logan would love to see you Mary Anne."

"Thank you. Is it okay if I come around 4:45?"

"Sure. I'll call you if something happens and you shouldn't come, okay?"

"Okay. Thanks Mrs. Bruno."

"No problem. Good-bye Mary Anne."

"'Bye."

I hung up the phone at went to the kitchen, where I made myself a snack. Then I sat down at the kitchen table and began my homework. I managed to finish about half of it by 4:30. I cleaned up my snack and then took all my books upstairs. Then I went and found my jacket, and headed out to Logan's house.

The walk to the Brunos' isn't that long so I reached the door promptly at 4:45. I rang the bell and waited. Kerry, Logan's younger sister, opened the door a moment later.

"Hi Mary Anne!"

"Hi Kerry." I said, trying not to let on that my mood wasn't that good.

"Are you here to see Logan?"

"Yep. Can I come in?"

"Sure." Kerry opened the door all the way and let me in. Mrs. Bruno appeared after the door had been closed.

"Hi Mary Anne."

"Hello."

"Logan's very excited to see you."

"I'm looking forward to seeing him, too." I said politely. Meanwhile, my heart was pounding. I wasn't sure what to expect when I saw Logan. Mrs. Bruno had said the flu bug was a nasty one. How nasty was nasty? Would Logan look really bad or not so bad? I really hoped I wouldn't cry. I knew the last thing Logan needed on his mind was a weepy girlfriend.

"Well, you can go on up. Austin Bentley is here, too. He brought Logan his homework."

"Okay. Thank you."

Mrs. Bruno disappeared to the kitchen and I headed up the stairs. At the top of the stairs, I turned left and went to the second door, which was closed. I knocked on it and waited. A moment later, Austin opened the door.

"Oh, hi Mary Anne." Austin said, looking somewhat surprised.

"Hi."

"Come on in." Austin held the door open for me.

"Thanks."

I went in the room and everything hit me at once. There was Logan, lying in bed, half propped up by pillows. His eyes were glazed, his face red and sweaty. He smiled weakly at me. I glanced around his room and saw a washcloth in a basin of water and a thermometer sitting on his night table. I tried to absorb it all while trying not to cry.

"Hi Logan." I said quietly.

"Hi Mary Anne." Logan's voice was raspy and his words jagged.

"Well, I guess I'll be going. Feel better soon Logan. 'Bye Mary Anne." Austin said, grabbing his backpack.

"'Bye Austin."

"Thanks for the homework. 'Bye." Logan said, talking softly. Austin left and closed the door behind him. I turned towards Logan, who was looking at the wall. He sighed.

"How're you feeling?" I asked, sitting in the chair by his desk.

"Lousy, but thanks for asking." Logan said, and I knew he was trying to get me to smile. I did and then so did he.

"I'm sorry. You must be miserable."

"Yeah, but I don't think it's as bad as it looks."

"Oh. How did you catch this bug?" I asked.

"I don't know. I was fine when I went to bed last night but this morning I woke up around five and I could barely move with feeling dizzy."

"Wow. Hopefully it doesn't last too much longer."

"It shouldn't. My mom talked to the doctor and he said that things like this are usually twenty-four hour things. I already feel better than this morning."

"That's good. What have you done all day? I know that when I'm sick, I'm always really bored."

"I haven't really been awake much today. I slept a lot."

"Well, sleep's okay. It's your body's way of getting better."

"I know. Mary Anne…" Logan's voice trailed off.

"Yes?"

"I saw your face when you came in and I know you. Promise me something."

"What?"

"Promise me you won't worry about me. I'm going to be fine."

"Okay. I promise." It amazed me about how perceptive Logan could be.

"Thank you."

"You know, seeing you makes me think that my day wasn't all that bad."

"What do you mean?"

"I had a really bad day-I forgot stuff, I grabbed the wrong things, my make-up was different this morning, my sweater was backwards, I was almost late. You get the general idea. But seeing how miserable you look makes me feel lucky that I was even able to get out of bed this morning."

"I'm glad I could put things into perspective, even if it means I have to suffer like this."

"Logan, I'm not saying that I'm glad you feel this way, but thank you for the reminder of how lucky I am. Now, I hate to say this, but I've got to go. It's almost 5:30."

"I know Mary Anne. I was just teasing you."

I stood up and put my coat back on.

"'Bye Logan. I hope you feel better soon, oh and Kristy said to tell you the whole BSC says they hope you get better soon too."

"Thanks Mary Anne."

"No problem. 'Bye."

"'Bye."

I went to the door and just before I closed it, I glanced back at Logan, who was staring at the wall again. It took every ounce of willpower that I had to keep from crying. I just went outside and ran to Claudia's house for the BSC meeting.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two

**Chapter Two**

Maybe I'd better explain what the Baby-sitters Club is and who everyone is. The Baby-Sitters Club really more of a business than a club. Kristy Thomas thought it up when we were in the seventh grade. She was watching her mom had to make a million calls trying to find a baby-sitter. Then the idea for the club hit her. What if someone could call one number and reach a lot of baby-sitters? So that's how the BSC came to be. There are seven of us in, as well as two associate members. Our members are Kristy, Claudia, Dawn, Jessi, Mallory and me, Mary Anne. Our two associate members are Shannon Kilbourne and ….Logan! The regular members meet on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays from 5:30 to 6:00. Clients call us then and we book jobs. It's very successful business and we all make a lot of money off of it. We pay dues every week to help with costs, like Claudia's phone bill, Kristy's transportation, and supplies for our kid-kits. A kid-kit is a box we take on jobs filled with stuff for kids to do. Kids love them and parents are happy because their kids are happy.

I'll tell you a little bit about each of the members, starting with Kristy. Kristy is the President of the BSC. She loves conducting meetings, but she can be a little bossy. She sits in Claudia's directors' chair and has a visor on with a pencil sticking out from behind her ear. She's short and has brown hair that's always in a ponytail. Kristy loves sports and hates dressing up. Her normal clothes are jeans, a turtleneck, and a sweater. She has this baseball cap with a picture of a collie on it that she wears in the summer. Kristy coaches a softball team for the kids we sit for called Kristy's Krushers. The kids are either too young or too scared to join little league but still want to play soft-ball. Her friend, Bart Taylor, coaches another team called Bart's Bashers. Kristy and Bart like each other but haven't actually gone out together.

Kristy comes from a big mixed-up family. Her dad walked out on her mom, her brothers and her when she was 5. She used to live next door to me, but her mom re-married a man named Watson Brewer. Now she lives across town in a mansion. It's a good thing she lives in a mansion, though, because her family is huge. There's her, her two older brothers, Charlie and Sam, who are seventeen and fifteen, her younger brother, David Michael, who's seven, her step-brother and sister, Karen and Andrew, who are seven and five, and her adopted sister, Emily Michelle, who's two. Kristy's grandmother moved in when her mom and Watson adopted Emily. Then there are also the pets in the Brewer-Thomas household. They have a Bernice Mountiandog puppy named Shannon, a fat cat named Boo-Boo, two fish, and Karen's rat and Andrew's hermit crab. Only the rat and crab travel back and forth with Karen and Andrew. They visit every other weekend. Kristy over all is very fun and loving, with lots of energy. I think that it's because of her the BSC has flourished the way it has.

Claudia is the Vice-President of the club because we use her room for meeting. Claud has her own phone number, so it's very convenient because then we don't tie up an adult's phone line. Claudia is absolutely gorgeous. She's Japanese-American and has fair, creamy skin and long, jet-black hair. She love clothes and shopping and is always wearing wild outfits that she is quite proud of. Like, today for instance, she was wearing a sequined top with a camisole under it and blue jeans she had decorated with buttons and ribbons. Her hair was held in a side ponytail by a glass barrette she had made herself. Claudia absolutely loves art and is very good at is. She's not the world's best student, which is hard on her parents. They are very conservative and love the classic novels, good grades, and the prospects of Claudia becoming a doctor or something. Claudia's older sister, Janine, is a real genius. She's only in high school, but she's taking courses that the community college. Claudia sometimes feel that her parents are disappointed in her because she's not as smart as Janine, but her parent's don't realize that she's smart when it comes to art and stuff.

Claud's grandmother, Mimi, recently died, which was hard on Claudia. She and Mimi were very close. Besides loving art, Claudia also loves Nancy Drew mysteries and junk food. Her parents disapprove of both, so she has to hide them in her room. You would never tell by looking at Claudia that she loves junk food because she has no weight problems or acne. Claudia is really talented when it comes to entertaining little kids when they're bored and she's an important part of the team.

Stacey McGill is the treasurer of the club. She keeps track of the dues we pay and where it all goes. Stacey is very good at math and it smart. She grew up in New York City, but now lives here with her divorced mother. Since Stace grew up in the Big Apple, she dresses in more sophisticated, trendy clothes. I don't know Stace that well because she's more outgoing and I'm kind of shy.

Stacey has this disease called diabetes. It has something to do about your sugar levels in the blood. Stacey has to be very careful about what she eats and she has to give herself injections all the time. Stacey doesn't let this fact of life ruin her outlook. She's very upbeat and happy and she's lots of fun to be around

Dawn is another one of my best friends. Right now, she is the alternative officer. This means that she can sub in for anyone who has to miss a meeting. Dawn is also gorgeous, with long, white-blonde hair and she dresses to please herself, which can be very conservative but sometimes can be very unique. She loves health food, ghost stories and exercising. Dawn is also very passionate about the environment and the earth, which can be good and bad, considering what it is she wants you to do about it. Once, she got everyone mad at her when she pushed everyone to vote for a recycling plant at school. Dawn lives with her mom because her parents are divorced. Her dad and younger brother, Jeff, live in California, which is where Dawn grew up. I know Dawn misses it there, but she's not one to sulk about it. Dawn also lives with my dad and me because our parents got married a while ago. We found out that they were high school sweethearts and got them together. I love living with Dawn because it's like having a sleep-over with your best friend all the time.

Mallory and Jessi are junior members because, unlike the rest of us, they are in the sixth grade and are eleven (the rest of us are thirteen and in the eighth grade). They're only allowed to sit in the afternoons, unless they're sitting for their own siblings. Mal and Jessi both feel that their parents treat them like babies, but that's were the similarities end. Jessi has a sister, Becca, and a brother named Squirt. Mallory has 7 brothers and sisters, including 10 year-old triplets. Mallory wants to be a children's author and illustrator when she grows up and Jessi wants to be a ballerina. She's taking lessons in Stanford and she's amazing at it. Mallory has wild, curly red hair, glasses, and braces. Jessi has brown hair, which is usually pulled into a bun. Also, Jessi's black and Mal's white. That doesn't stop them though. Jessi got a lot of flank because of that fact, but Kristy didn't see a problem with it and she said so. We all accept Jessi for who she is and we love her. Mal was the first one to introduce herself to Jessi and now they are inseparable sometimes, especially when they read horse stories together.

Shannon and Logan are our associate members, so they don't come to meetings. They're more back-up members. I don't know Shannon that well. All I know is she lives by Kristy and has curly blonde hair and blue eyes. Logan is my boyfriend. His family moved here last year from Louisville, Kentucky. He's very cute and looks like Cam Geary, my favorite movie star. He has this incredible accent and he's really good with kids.

And then there's me, Mary Anne. You know a lot about me already, but I'm the secretary of the club. I keep track of who can sit when. I'm short, with short brown hair. And that's about it.

So that's the BSC. We're all very different but we work really well together.

I reached Claudia's house and even before I went to Claudia's room, I went to the Kishi's bathroom. I just stared at myself and let a few tears fall. Then I glanced at my watch. I quickly washed my face and then tore to Claudia's room. I slipped in just as Kristy said,

"Your attention please."

I quietly took my place on the bed and carefully studied the record book. I wasn't paying attention until Claudia nudged me with her elbow.

"What?"

"Stacey's waiting for your dues." Claudia said, pointing to Stacey's outstretched hand. I reached into my purse and found my dues money and handed it to Stacey. Then I went back to studying the record book. I jumped a mile when the phone rang. We scheduled a job for Kristy with the Perkins girls. I didn't pay attention to the conversation about what Alan Gray had done during gym class. I jumped again when the phone rang a second time. We put down Mal for a job at the Marshalls.

My mind wandered to Logan. I know I had promised Logan I wouldn't worry, but I couldn't help it. I could just picture getting a phone call from Mrs. Bruno saying that I needed to come to the hospital quickly, that Logan wanted to see me one last time. Even worse, I could picture myself running through the wards of the hospital lost, and finally someone finding me and telling me I was too late.

"No!" I cried out. Everyone just looked at me like I was crazy. I began to turn red in the face. But, luckily, I was saved by the phone.

"Hello Baby-Sitters Club." Claudia said after picking up the phone. She listened a moment and then said, "Okay. I'll call you right back Doctor Johanssen."

Claud hung up the phone and turned to me.

"Johanssen's need a sitter for Charlotte on Friday."

I flipped open the appointment book and we put Stacey down for the job. Claudia called back Doctor Johanssen but the minute she took her hand off the receiver, the questions started.

"Mary Anne, are you okay?" Kristy asked.

"What's wrong?" Dawn asked. I said nothing, trying to control the tears that longed to fall.

"Nothing's wrong. I'm fine." I managed to say.

"Mary Anne. We're your friends. You can talk to us." Claudia said. I took a deep breath and then the words just all fell out in a big jumble.

"I keep getting pictures in my head of Logan, and the hospital, and I got lost and then I'm too late…" I ran out of breath. Everyone stared at me and then Kristy started to attempt to translate what I had said.

"You keep seeing Logan in the hospital?"

"Yes. I kept getting lost and then I was too late."

"Lost in the hospital?" Stacey asked.

"Yes. And someone found me and told me that Logan had died."

"Oh Mary Anne." Kristy said sympathetically. "I'm sorry."

"Whoa, hold it a minute. What's going on?" Mallory asked, looking completely confused.

"Yeah. What's happening? Is Logan okay?" Jessi added.

"Logan wasn't in school today 'cause he's got the flu. Mary Anne went to visit him after school." Kristy explained and then she turned to me. "How was Logan?"

"He's doing okay. It's just a flu-bug he said." I said, wiping my cheeks. My tears had overflowed and were now falling freely.

"Then why do you say that you keep seeing him in the hospital?" Dawn asked gently.

"Because I'm worried about him. I've never seen him looking so awful."

"I'm sure he doesn't like feeling that way Mary Anne. And he probably wouldn't want you to worry like this." Mallory said.

"No. He made me promise not to worry about him but I can't help it."

"Well, all you can do is know that Logan's going to be okay and I'm sure that Mrs. Bruno is taking good care of him." Kristy said.

"I know. Thanks you guys." I said, wiping my eyes again.

"No problem." Dawn said, giving me an awkward hug.

"Yeah. Anytime." Claudia tried to hug me from the other side.

"Pile on Mary Anne!" Kristy cried and everyone jumped onto the bed in a fit of giggling. I had to admit, it felt good to laugh and I needed it.

After the meeting was over, I went outside and began to walk home through the cool fall air. I took a deep breath and then slowly exhaled. Dawn was walking beside me and smiled.

"Feel better?" she asked.

"Yeah, although I still can't help but worry about him a little bit."

"A little bit is okay Mary Anne. It shows that you truly care about him. Just don't go making yourself sick because of it."

"I won't. What you just said reminded me of a quote from the Winnie the Pooh movie I watched with Jamie Newton the other day."

"And what was that?"

"It went like this: 'Some people care too much. I think it's called love.'"

"Aww. That is so cute." Dawn said.

"It is, but it's true, if you think about it."

"Yeah, it is." Dawn agreed.

"Do you have homework?" I asked.

"Not much. You?"

"I have tons. I didn't plan on visiting Logan this afternoon."

"Well, if you need any help, let me know." Dawn said.

"Thanks Dawn."

"No problem."

Dawn and I had reached our house by now so we went in and began to cook supper. And in case you're wondering, I was able to finish all my homework, with some help from Dawn.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Three

**Chapter Three**

Mary Anne

Well, this is defiantly a job I won't forget anytime soon. I had just settled down with my homework when Mrs. Bruno called me. Hunter had had an asthma attack and she needed a baby-sitter. She said she called me because I had already been exposed to Logan's virus. So I went. Logan wasn't doing much better, but Kerry and I did her homework…

The whole next day I was feeling much better about Logan. I even managed to forget about him during lunch. I know that sounds horrible but it was a good thing. I didn't have a baby-sitting job that afternoon, so I went home and began my homework. I had just settled myself with my work and a snack when the phone rang. Since I was the only one home, I would have to answer it. I got up and ran to the phone.

"Hello?"

"Mary Anne?"

"Yes, this is she."

"Hello dear. This is Mrs. Bruno."

"Oh, hi."

"How are you?"

"I'm good. And you?"

"Well, I'm afraid I'm in a bit of a pickle and I was hoping you could help me."

"I'll do my best."

"Hunter just had an asthma attack and I've got to take him to the doctor. I was wondering if you could come and stay with Kerry. Logan, I'm afraid, isn't doing much better than yesterday. I can't get a hold of Mr. Bruno and I would rather you baby-sit because you've already been exposed to whatever Logan's got."

"Sure, I can come. When do you want me over?"

"Right now, if possible."

"Sure. I'll be right over."

"Thanks Mary Anne. You're a lifesaver."

I hung up the phone and grabbed my coat. I dashed out the door and walked quickly all the way to Brunos'. By the time I was there, I was out of breath.

"Hello Mary Anne. Come on in." Mrs. Bruno had met me at the door. She ushered me inside and closed the door.

"Okay. Kerry is in her room doing some homework. She just had a snack, so nothing more or she'll spoil her appetite for dinner. Logan's in his room, of course, and he should be fine. He was sleeping when I went up a few minutes ago. I'll be back probably around five o'clock or so. The number where I can be reached is on the fridge. It's the number for the doctor's office."

"Okay."

"I think that's all. Do you have any questions?"

"Nope."

"All right then. Hunter!"

Hunter came slowly out of the den, breathing deeply and slowly.

"Thanks again, Mary Anne." Mrs. Bruno said as she closed the door behind her and Hunter.

I sighed and took off my coat. I hung it up and then headed up the stairs. I peeked into Logan's room and found him still sleeping. I watched him for a moment and listened to his breathing, which was short and raspy. I sighed and then I went to Kerry's room.

"Knock-knock." I said, tapping lightly on the door.

"Come in." Kerry said, without looking up from her desk.

"Hi Kerry." I said. Kerry turned around when she heard my voice.

"Hi Mary Anne."

"How's it going?" I asked, sitting on her bed.

"Good. Do you understand fractions?"

"I can try and help you with them, but math isn't my strong suit."

"Okay."

I got up and went to Kerry's desk. I tried to help her with the fractions and in the end we got them right.

"Great! No more homework." Kerry said.

"That is great. What do you want to do now?" I asked.

"Can I invite Becca over?"

"Well, I don't know. We don't want Becca here because then she might catch what Logan's got."

"Oh." Kerry looked disappointed. "Maybe I'll just read my book."

"What book are you reading?"

"James and the Giant Peach."

"That's a good one. Do you want me to read some of it to you?"

"No thanks. I like reading by myself."

"You're sure?"

"Yep."

"Okay. I'll be downstairs if you need me."

"Okay."

I left Kerry's room and went to check on Logan, who was still sleeping, although his sleep was still not restful. He kept tossing and turning, muttering things under his breath.

I went downstairs and sat down with a book from the Bruno's shelves and lost myself in it. I jumped when the doorbell rang.

I got up from the couch and checked my watch. It was 4:30. I went to the door and peeked through the peep hole. Austin Bentley was on the step, holding a stack of books. I opened the door.

"Hi Mary Anne." Austin said, sounding somewhat surprised.

"Hi. Come on in." I opened the door wider and Austin came in.

"Are you visiting Logan too?" Austin asked.

"What? No, actually Mrs. Bruno had to take Hunter to the doctor and needed a sitter for Kerry."

"Is Logan here?"

"Yeah. He was sleeping, but he might be awake now."

"I've got all his homework again. Do you mind if I go up and see if he's awake?"

"No. Go ahead."

"Great."

Austin went up the stairs and I went back to my book, although I couldn't really concentrate. I was listening to see if I could hear if Logan was awake or not. After five minutes, I realized he must be because if he wasn't, then Austin would've come down again. I settled myself and got lost in it again. I jumped when Austin said,

"Mary Anne."

I turned, my face turning a deep shade of red.

"Sorry I scared you. I'm going to leave, but Logan wants to see you."

"Okay. Thanks Austin."

"See you in school tomorrow."

"See you."

I got up and headed up the stairs. Logan's door was closed so I knocked.

"Come in." I heard Logan call. I opened the door and went into the room. Logan's face broke into a smile when he saw me.

"Hi Mary Anne."

"Hi. How are you feeling?" I asked, sitting at the desk chair. I glanced around the room and saw that it hadn't changed much from the day before. The basin of water was still there, along with the thermometer in the cup. Logan, however, looked much better. His face wasn't as red and his eyes were bright and clear.

"Okay, but not great. Austin told me you're baby-sitting."

"Yeah. Hunter had to go to the doctor so your mom called me."

"What's wrong with Hunter?"

"He had an asthma attack."

"Oh. Poor guy. What's Kerry doing?"

"She's reading. We already finished her homework."

"What were you doing?"

"Reading. So did Austin bring your homework?" I knew the answer but I could tell we were struggling for conversation.

"Yeah. Lot of it, too."

"Uh-huh. Do you think you'll be in school tomorrow?" I asked.

"Probably not. Day after tomorrow for sure, though."

I had run out of things to say so I didn't say anything.

"Mary Anne." I turned to look at Logan.

"Yes?"

"Did you keep your promise?" Logan stared at me expectantly. I looked down, trying to figure out if I dare tell him about the BSC meeting the night before.

"Mary Anne?"

"Yes, Logan. I did." I really hoped my face was showing that I was lying, but I didn't want to make him feel any lousier than he already did. Logan must've believed what I said because he didn't say anything else.

I was searching my brain for something to say when I heard the front door open.

"Hello? Anybody home?" Mrs. Bruno called.

"I'll be right back." I said to Logan. I got up and went to the top of the stairs.

"We're up here!" I called down. Mrs. Bruno appeared at the bottom of the stairs and began to come up.

"How'd it go?" she asked.

"Fine. Kerry and I finished her homework and then she wanted to read, so she's still in her room reading. Austin came by a little while ago with Logan's homework and I was just visiting with him."

"Sounds like everything was fine. Do you want to visit with Logan awhile longer or are you ready to go home?"

"I just need to say good-bye and then I'm ready to go home."

"Okay. I'll be downstairs when you're ready."

"Okay. Thanks."

Mrs. Bruno headed off to Kerry's room and I went back to Logan's room.

"I'm going to go now." I said. "I hope you feel better really soon."

"Thanks Mary Anne. See you later."

"See you."

I turned and went downstairs and collected my pay. Then I walked out into the autumn air and headed for home.

That night, I was lying in my bed, trying to fall asleep. I knew I had seen for myself that Logan was going to be okay. Instead of being insanely worried about him, I pictured myself running in the park with him. He often chased me and then we would fall down into a pile of leaves or snow. I smiled at the memories and turned over onto my side and fell into a restful sleep. If only I knew what was to come.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter Four

**Chapter Four**

Kristy

Today I sat for the Perkins girls. Unlike normal, they could think of nothing to do. Mrs. Perkins had taken Laura to the pediatrician, so I only had to watch Mariah and Gabbie. I went through a list of things that we could do-but they didn't want to color, or play dolls, or dress up, or do play-doh. Finally, I suggested a trip to the library and that was met with something that couldn't be called enthusiastic but it was better than the flat out no's from the other games…

While I was sitting for Kerry and Logan, Kristy had a job with the Perkins. The Perkins girls are really cute. Mariah's five and a half, Gabbie is two, and Laura is just a baby. Mariah and Gabbie are really cute and talented-they know dozens of songs and can dance and Mariah has taken theatre classes. They live in Kristy's old house, across the street from Claudia.

Kristy walked home from school on Tuesday with Claudia and then went straight to Perkinses. She rang the door bell and waited. She heard pounding feet running towards the door and Chewbacca barking. Chewy is a big lovable black lab. Gabbie threw the door open.

"Hi Kristy Thomas!" Gabbie cried. Gabbie calls everyone by their full names.

"Hiya Gabbie." Kristy said. Mrs. Perkins appeared holding a bundled up Laura.

"Hi Kristy," she said smiling warmly. "Come on in."

"Thanks. Hiya Laura." Kristy said, taking one of Laura's hands. Laura stared at Kristy and then her face began to crumple. She began to whimper.

"Oh, Miss Laura. What's wrong?" Kristy cooed, but Laura's cries began to get louder.

"I'm sorry." she said to Mrs. Perkins.

"It's not your fault Kristy. Laura's just been touchy lately. I'm going to take her to the pediatrician and then I have stop at the post office. I should be back before five."

"Okay."

"Mariah and Gabbie still need their snack-peanut butter and crackers are fine. The emergency numbers are on the bulletin board. Since I'll be at the doctor's office, if there's an emergency you can try calling there or try Mr. Perkins office number. It's on the board too."

"Okay."

"Do you have any questions?"

"Nope."

"All right then. Girls?" Mrs. Perkins called. Mariah and Gabbie came out of the den.

"I'm going to go now. You be good for Kristy."

"Bye mommy. Bye Laura." Mariah said, giving each of them a kiss. Gabbie did the same and Kristy had to smile. What great kids.

Mrs. Perkins left and Kristy turned to face the girls.

"Are you two hungry?" she asked.

"Yes. I would like some crackers and juice please." said Mariah politely.

"Me too, please." Gabbie echoed.

"All righty then. To the kitchen." Kristy said. The girls followed her into the kitchen and Kristy got out the crackers and juice.

"Would you like peanut butter?" Kristy asked.

"Yes please." Mariah said and Gabbie nodded. So Kristy poured out three cups of juice and made 9 peanut butter and cracker sandwiches.

"Here we are." Kristy said, setting a plate and cup in front of each girl.

"Thank you."

"Yes, thank you Kristy Thomas."

"You're welcome." Kristy said, sitting at the table. She quickly ate her snack but the girls were much slower. Kristy watched the way they ate. They both did the exact same thing. Break the sandwich in half, lick the peanut butter off, put the crackers together again, chew, swallow, take a drink, and start over. They reminded Kristy of her brother Andrew, who eats very slowly and methodically as well.

The girls finished their snacks and Kristy began to clean up.

"What do you girls want to do today?" she asked, rinsing the plates.

"I don't know. We can't play outside." Mariah said, pointing to the soggy grass and puddles on the sidewalk from the rain this morning.

"Do you want to color some pictures?" Kristy asked.

"Yeah!" Gabbie cried.

"Not really. I colored three in school today."

"No, not really." Gabbie said, changing her mind to think the same way as her sister.

"What about playing dolls?"

"No thank you. Our dolls are on vacation right now."

"Oh? Where did they go?"

"Well, Barbie has gone to Hawaii with Ken, Sally has gone to Europe and Michelle is in Tokyo."

"Okay. What about dress up? You girls love playing dress up." Kristy shut the dishwasher and looked at the girls. Mariah was shaking her head, her blonde curls bouncing. Gabbie was imitating her sister only her straight hair was swishing from side to side.

"Bored with that game too? How about play-doh?"

"I did play-doh this morning." Gabbie said. Kristy sighed.

"Well, it's not actually raining. We could go to the library."

"Well, okay." Mariah said, thinking about it.

"Yeah." Gabbie said.

"Great. Now, why don't you girls find your coats?"

Mariah and Gabbie went off and Kristy wrote a note to Mrs. Perkins in case she and Laura came back early. The girls reappeared with their coats and boots on.

"Okay girls. Let's get going." Kristy put on her coat and locked the door with key that was hanging by the back door. She decided to grab an umbrella, just in case.

Kristy and the girls reached the library quickly because it was cold outside so they had waked fast. Inside the nice warm lobby, Kristy helped the girls take off their coats and they hung them up.

Inside the library, Kristy said hello to Mrs. Kishi, who is the head librarian.

"Hello Kristy. Are you here with the girls for the puppet show?"

"Puppet show?"

"Yes. A man from Stanford is here and is doing a puppet show on Rapunzel."

"Great. Thanks for telling me."

"No problem. Enjoy the show."

Kristy caught up with the girls and told them about the puppet show.

"Oh boy!" Mariah said, smiling. "I've never even heard this story."

"Yeah!" Gabbie said, jumping up and down.

"Okay then, let's go." Kristy said, leading the way to the children's room. Once Gabbie and Mariah were settled in front of the puppet show, Kristy went to the adult section and searched through the newspaper for the sports section. She had just found it when something else caught her eye.

**STONEYBROOK MANOR CLOSED DUE TO OUTBREAK!**

Kristy picked up the article and took it and the sports section to a chair near the children's room. She began reading the article and was soon finished. What the article said was that Stoneybrook Manor, the old age home in town, had been closed to all visitors due to a vicious influenza outbreak that had happened a couple days earlier. Kristy put the paper down and her mind wandered to Logan. She wondered if Logan had the same type of thing, although she doubted it because the article said that anyone with a strong immune system could probably withstand the effects of the flu virus. She knew that Logan was normally strong and healthy, but of course, she knew that _something _had caused him to get sick. She put the thoughts out of her mind after making a mental note to tell me and then pulled out the sports section.

Soon the girls' puppet show was over and she helped them pick out a couple books each. She led them to the check-out desk and handed Mrs. Kishi her card.

"Did you girls enjoy the show?" she asked, while scanning the books.

"Yes. Rapunzel has very beautiful hair. It was sooooo long." Mariah said and Gabbie nodded.

"Yes, Rapunzels' hair is quite beautiful. And what about you, Kristy, did you find anything?"

"I was looking at the newspaper and I saw the article about Stoneybrook Manor."

"Yes, I read that too. Sad story. Hopefully it doesn't spread to everyone else though."

Kristy nodded and helped the girls put the books into bags, still talking to Mrs. Kishi while helping them.

"Yeah, although Logan Bruno is down with the exact same thing right now."

"Is that right? Poor dear. Well, let's just hope it doesn't get any worse than that."

"Yeah. Okay girls, it's time to get going. Your mom and Laura will be home soon. See you later Mrs. Kishi."

"Good bye Kristy. 'Bye girls."

"'Good bye." Mariah and Gabbie said politely. Kristy helped them with their coats and led the way home.

On the way, her mind wandered back to Logan and me. Kristy didn't know at the time that I was sitting for Logan.

"Kristy?" Mariah asked, tugging at the sleeve of her jacket.

"What?" Kristy looked down at Mariah.

"What are you thinking about?"

"About Logan Bruno. Do you know him?"

"Yes. He's baby-sat for us. Even Laura."

"Yep."

"Why are you thinking about Logan?"

"He's got the flu. He wasn't even in school the past two days."

"Poor Logan. Can I make him a get well card?" Mariah looked so sincere that Kristy had to smile.

"I'm sure Logan would love that."

Kristy and the girls walked home quickly and as soon as Kristy got the girls coats and boots off, they were off making a get well card for Logan. Kristy watched them and smiled.

The girls finished just as their mother came home.

"Hello girls. How did things go Kristy?"

"Great. We went to the library for a puppet show."

"Lucky girls!" Mrs. Perkins exclaimed to the girls who smiled and nodded.

"Look what we made Mommy!" Mariah thrust out the card. Mrs. Perkins took it and smiled.

"How nice. Who's it for, though Loves?"

"Logan Bruno. Kristy told us he has the flu."

"Oh. Well I'm sure this will help him feel better."

Mrs. Perkins paid Kristy and Kristy promised to give the card to Logan.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter Five**

The next afternoon was Wednesday, which meant a BSC meeting. Since I had felt so down at the last meeting, I hadn't taken any jobs and I didn't have any homework. I walked home and then sat in the living room staring into space, wondering what to do. It was then that I remember the card the Perkins girls had made. I decided to leave early and go visit Logan before the BSC meeting.

It was snowing outside so I found my boots and parka and slipped them on. I walked to Brunos quickly. I rang the doorbell and waited. I stood there for over two minutes and then my heart began to pound. Thought were running through my head-what if something had happened? If Logan was sick, he shouldn't be anywhere but home, unless…

I turned around and started down the steps, planning to go to Claudia's and make some phone calls. Just as I jumped down the last step, I heard the front door open. I whirled around.

"Mary Anne, hi." Logan had answered the door. He looked so much better; he was even dressed.

"Logan! I didn't think anyone was home." I said, walking back up the steps and going inside.

"Well, only I'm home. Mom took Kerry and Hunter shoe shopping."

"Glad to see you're feeling better." I said, taking off my coat.

"Thanks. I'm so glad to finally get out of bed. I don't know how long I could've stood it much longer!"

"I imagine."

"You want some hot chocolate?"

"Sure."

I followed Logan to the kitchen and sat while he put the kettle on the stove.

"So I take it you'll be in school tomorrow?" I asked.

"Yep. I'm all caught up on the stuff I missed, except for today. But Austin said he'd come by with my work again and I plan to finish it tonight."

"That's good. Just don't over do it." I cautioned. Logan turned around and smiled.

"You sound just like my mother. She's so worried that I'm going to over work myself and have a relapse."

"Oh, sorry. I don't want to sound like I'm your mother." I said and Logan laughed.

"It's okay. I know you're just warning me to be careful."

"Exactly."

"Here we are." Logan set two steaming mugs on the table and then sat across from me.

"Thanks. I can't believe how cold it is outside."

"I know. The weatherman said that we're supposed to get a huge storm day after tomorrow. Maybe we'll have a snow day."

"Maybe." I took a sip of my hot chocolate and then I remembered why I had come.

"Oh, I almost forgot!" I cried, reaching into my pocket.

"Forgot what?"

"To give you this. Kristy was sitting for the Perkins girls yesterday and they made this for you." I handed Logan the card and watched him read it. His face broke into a smile and my heart rate soared. I absolutely love Logan's smile and it did my heart good to see it.

"Thanks for bringing it." Logan said, setting the card on the table.

"No problem. Apparently Stoneybrook Manor is closed down right now because of an outbreak." (Kristy had also told me about that at school)

"Really? What kind of outbreak?"

"Influenza, I think is what Kristy said. She said it sounded like the same bug you had."

"Huh. I wonder if it's the same."

"Yeah."

"Hopefully it's not."

"Yeah."

"Is something wrong, Mary Anne? You're kinda quiet."

"What? No, nothing's wrong. I'm just tired."

Logan didn't say anything and we sat there in an awkward silence. Logan doesn't know this, but at the time I was kinda embarrassed. I think he might've felt the same way. For the past 2 days, I had seen him in a very vulnerable position and now we were sitting across from each other just like it always was. I was glad he was better, but it felt kinda weird. We sat there for a couple of minutes in silence, occasionally broken by Logan coughing. I finished my hot chocolate and then I cleared my throat politely.

"Um, I've got to go for the BSC meeting."

"Oh, okay." Logan got up with me and walked me to the door, where I put my coat on.

"Thanks for coming."

"No problem. See you tomorrow."

"Yeah. 'Bye."

"'Bye."

Logan closed the door and I walked down the walk and headed towards Claudias', thinking about the last twenty minutes. I walked quickly to Claudias', my head bent down against the cold. I didn't really pay attention to because I was focusing on getting to Claud's quickly because of the cold, although I think I passed Austin on the way.

Once I reached Kishis', I went up to Claudia's room.

"Hey Mary Anne." Kristy said from the director's chair.

"Hi." I sat down on the bed next to Claudia, who was eating something chocolate and gooey. We smiled at each other and she offered me a piece of a chocolate bar.

"Thanks." I said, putting it into my mouth. We sat there chewing and soon all the other members arrived.

"Order! Come to order!" Kristy said and I turned to look at the clock even though I knew it was 5:30 on the nose.

"Any new business?" Kristy asked. We all shook our heads no.

"Have you all been reading the notebook?" We all nodded yes. We had just reached a lull, the phone rang. Stacey answered it.

"Hello Baby-Sitters Club. How may I help you?"

Stacey listened for a few moments and then hung up.

"That was Dr. Johanssen. She needs a sitter for Char for the next three afternoons, possibly Saturday, too."

"Is everything okay?" Kristy asked.

"Technically, yes. Dr. Johanssen said that the hospital is just really busy right now, what with that flu outbreak."

Kristy accepted this answer for the moment and we lined up sitters for Char. After Stacey had called them back, Kristy thought out loud and asked a question at the same time.

"The flu outbreak? But I thought that was just the nursing home."

"I guess not. Maybe it is the same bug that Logan had." Stace said.

"Maybe. Hey Mary Anne, is Logan better yet? It's been what, three days now?"

I nodded. "Yeah. He'll be in school tomorrow. I went to drop off the Perkinses' card and he was up and dressed. And bored." I added with a smile.

"Figures. After three days of being in bed would be enough to send anyone up a tree." Dawn said. "Even a teenager."

"Yeah. My mom hates it when I'm home sick. She says I drive her crazy." Stacey added.

"Well, anyways, let's just hope this is just a big coincidence and none of us or our charges gets sick." Kristy said.

"Um…I have a question." Mal said, but was cut off by the phone.

"Hello Baby-Sitters Club." Claudia said after picking up the phone. "Yes, good thanks. Friday? Let me check and I'll call you right back."

Claudia hung up the phone.

"That was your mom, Mal. She needs an extra sitter on Friday night."

"Oh right. She and Dad are going to some tennis workshop in Stanford I think."

I picked up the record book and paged through it.

"Well, let's see…Friday. Claudia, you're baby-sitting for Newtons, Stace for Johanssens, Dawn, Kristy, and I are free."

"Either you or Dawn take it. It'll be much easier for transportation." Kristy spoke up.

"You can take it Dawn. You've only had one job this week."

"Thanks."

I wrote Dawn in and Claudia called Mrs. Pike back and told her to expect Dawn.

"Um…I had a question." Mal spoke up again.

"Oh, right. What is it?" Kristy asked Mal.

"If this flu outbreak does spread to everyone, do we take a job where we take care of sick kids?"

"That's a good question." Dawn said.

"Yeah…I really hate to say this but I think we do." Kristy said. Stacey cringed.

"I was afraid you would say that."

"Well, as baby-sitters, part of our job includes taking care of sick kids. If we're needed to stay with a sick child, I think its best we don't turn it down."

"I guess but I really don't want to get sick." Claudia said.

"It would mean missing a couple days of school." Jessi pointed out.

"True…maybe getting sick wouldn't be so bad." said Claudia. Of course we all knew she was kidding.

"Hey, guess what Alan did in gym class today!" Claudia said. She went on to tell us about the silly thing Alan had done and we got into a big gossip fest. Before we knew it, the meeting was over.

As we were walking home, Dawn and I were laughing over what Alan had done.

"Happy, Mary Anne?" Dawn asked. Her question took me by surprise. I thought for a minute.

"Yeah. I am."

"Good."

"I realized something Dawn."

"What's that?"

"I realized how much I actually care about Logan."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, when he was sick, I kept thinking that he wouldn't be okay. Like you said, that showed how much I cared about him. But this afternoon it was so weird that Logan was better. It was like the first time I looked he was so vulnerable but the second time he was back to his own self. It was kinda weird but I'm so glad he's well again. I didn't like seeing him like that."

"Of course you didn't. You care about him so you don't want anything to hurt him. But I'm glad you realized that he can take care of himself and you don't need to worry about him so much."

"Yeah. Thanks Dawn." I didn't really know what exactly I was thanking Dawn for but she must've felt the same way I did because she said,

"No problem."

We smiled at each other and went back to laughing over Alan Gray.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter Six**

The next morning dawned overcast and cloudy. During breakfast a few snowflakes began to fall. Dawn and I were in an unusually giddy mood as we walked to school and we didn't know why. We just couldn't stop laughing. I'll admit it, it was a nice change of pace. It felt great to laugh again. We reached the school and we split up—Dawn had to go deliver something to the office for Sharon. I headed to my locker and when I reached it, I began working the combo. I was somewhat aware when someone leaned against the locker next to me but I didn't look up. The door swung open and I began putting my books inside.

"Hi Mary Anne." I jumped at the sound of my name and then I turned to look who had said the words and who was leaning by my locker.

"Oh, hi Logan."

"Sorry I scared you."

"Oh, that's okay. Glad you're back."

"Thanks. It good to be back in normal surroundings. One more day and I'd have checked myself into a mental asylum."

I laughed and so did Logan.

"It's great to see you laughing Mary Anne. I--" Logan was cut off by the bell. I checked my watch.

"Wow…there's not many people here for being nine o'clock already."

"Maybe a bus is late because of the snow."

"Maybe. I'll see you at lunch?"

"Sure. 'Bye Mary Anne."

"'Bye."

I got my first period books and then slammed my locker shut. I managed to make it to my room without being trampled by other (although it wasn't as hard as it normally is). During roll-call, there were 3 people absent. We began class and still no one came in late. All through the first half of the day there were people absent from my classes.

At the lunch bell, I got up from my desk and headed towards the cafeteria. I sat at the table were the BSC always sits. Kristy was already there and so were Dawn and Stacey.

"Hi." I said, sitting down.

"Hi Mary Anne."

"Hey."

"What are you talking about?" I asked, pulling a sandwich and an orange from my bag.

"About how many people aren't here." Stacey said, in an as-matter-of-fact way.

"You noticed it too, huh?"

"Oh yeah. There were 5 people missing from homeroom today." Kristy said.

"3 from mine." Claudia said, sitting down with a hot lunch.

"2." Logan sat down.

"No students, but the teacher wasn't there." Stacey said.

"Wow…and there were 3 missing from my homeroom. I wonder why everyone's gone." I said. I had an idea but I didn't want to put the idea into actual reality until we were sure that's what had happened. No one said anything for a few minutes until Kristy spoke up.

"There was one nice thing about all these people being gone."

"What's that?"

"Teachers don't want to do anything major with all these students missing. I don't have any homework so far."

"Same." Dawn said.

"Yeah, me too." and "Ditto." echoed around the table.

"Good thing too." I said. "I've got to sit for Charlotte from after school all the way till eight o'clock."

"Wow." Logan said. "That's a long time. Dr. Johanssen had to work late at the hospital."

"Yeah. Dr. Johanssen will be working late a lot of nights this week. Char has a sitter almost every night."

"Why?"

"The flu outbreak at Stoneybrook Manor. We talked about this last night at the meeting."

"What else did you talk about?" Logan asked.

"Well, Dawn brought up a question." Kristy said. "She asked if we take a job if it includes sitting for sick children, should this flu bug spread to all of town."

"And what did you decide?"

"We decided we can't say no, so we have to do it, much to Claudia's disbelief."

Logan looked over to Claudia who shrugged and simply said,

"I hate being sick."

Logan smiled.

"It's not so bad Claud. 3 days and you'll be fine again."

"The three longest days in my life."

"Boy, don't I know it." Logan said laughing. "But you're serious, you're going to take a job if it includes sitting for sick kids?"

Kristy nodded. "Yep."

"Wow…that's some commitment. Hope everyone knows their first-aid."

"Oh, that reminds me! At the next meeting we need to go over that." Kristy said.

"Why?" Stacey asked. "I already know all I need to know about being sick, thank you."

"Just to be clear." Kristy said.

I was going to say something but the bell rang first. We gathered all of our trash and headed out of the cafeteria. My afternoon classes went by quickly and I ended up with no homework. Kristy had been right—teachers didn't want their students to miss that much so they often let us work on homework from other classes or gave us a reading to do from the text that took only ten minutes to complete.

I was heading out the front doors of the school when I heard someone call my name. I turned around and saw Kristy coming towards me. When she caught up to me we started walking again.

"I'm sitting at the Rodowsky's so I'll walk with you until we reach Johanssens."

"Great. But let's walk fast—it's freezing out here."

"It is. Guess what I saw this afternoon?"

"What?"

"Alan Grey in the nurses' office."

"Really?"

"Yeah. And for once, I actually felt somewhat sympathetic for him."

"Serious?"

"Yeah. I mean, he looked so awful and miserable. I couldn't help it."

"That's good Kristy. It shows you don't actually really hate him."

"Don't push that too far. I'm still not crazy about him."

"So then I guess the reason that all these kids are out of school _is_ because of the flu bug."

"Guess so. Well, here's Johanssens. I'll see you tomorrow Mary Anne."

"Okay. 'Bye Kristy."

I walked up to the Johanssens' door and opened it. Dr. Johanssen had told me that the door would be open and that Charlotte usually arrived home around 3:20. I went inside and made up some hot chocolate. I had just added the marshmallows when I heard the front door open.

"Charlotte?" I called.

"Hi Mary Anne." she said, appearing into view. She dropped her backpack on a chair and sat down in another chair around the table. I brought the two mugs to the table and then sat down next to her.

"How was school?" I asked.

"Okay. Guess what."

"What?"

"There were three people absent today and at lunch, Jasmine went home sick as well."

"That's too bad. I hope they feel better."

"Yeah, me too. Mommy said that the flu was going around. That's why I have so many baby-sitters this week."

"I know."

"I hope Becca or I don't get the flu."

"Well, what can you do to make sure you don't get sick?" I asked. Charlotte thought for a moment.

"Mommy always says that eating a lot of fruits and vegetables will keep you strong. Exercising too."

"That's a good start. What else?"

"A good night's sleep will keep you rested and stuff. Mommy said that a good nights sleep today is key to a good tomorrow."

"That's another good thing we can do. We can also take vitamin pills as long as your mom and dad know about them."

"Yeah. Mommy makes me take them every morning. They taste gross." Charlotte made a face at the thought and I smiled.

"I know. But they help keep you healthy. Is there anything else you can think of?"

"Washing our hands and sneezing into your sleeve. It keeps the germs from spreading."

"That's right. Very good Char! You really know your stuff."

Charlotte shrugged.

"That's what happens when you mom's a doctor."

"I guess so. So, what do you want to do? Do you have any homework?"

"Yeah. I have some spelling and math to do. Can you help me study for my spelling test?"

"Sure. Why don't you find your stuff while I clean up here?"

"Okay."

The rest of the afternoon went by smoothly. After homework we played Memory and Barbie's and then watched _The Cosby Show_.

As I walked home I smiled again at how much Charlotte knew about healthcare. And I prayed that she, along with me and everyone else followed those guidelines. I did not want a huge epidemic to inhabit Stoneybrook.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter Seven**

Dawn

Today Mal and I baby-sat for all of her younger siblings. It was an interesting job because all of the Pike kids, including Mallory, have caught the bug. So, needless to say, there was a lot of running around done on my part. Mr. and Mrs. Pike considered staying home but they've got these tickets from Mr. Pikes' boss, who was also attending the workshop with _his_ wife. Mallory wasn't doing so bad-just a slight cough-so she was able to help a lot. But I still got a great work-out…

Dawn arrived at the Pikes around 4:00 on Friday afternoon. She was missing a BSC meeting and so was Mallory. Anyways, Dawn rang the Pikes bell and Mrs. Pike answered the door.

"Hello Dawn. It's good to see you again." she said warmly, closing the door.

"Hi. It's good to see you too." Dawn said. She followed Mrs. Pike to the kitchen, noting the unusual silence. In this household, Dawn knew, silence could only mean one thing: trouble.

"Mr. Pike and I are going to Stanford and then we're going out to Mr. Pike's bosses house for coffee and dessert. We'll be back anywhere between 9:30 and 10:00."

"Okay."

"As you've probably noticed, everyone isn't here."

"Yeah, it's a little quiet."

"I'm afraid I'm leaving you with a lot to do. All of the children are sick in one sense or another."

"Sick?"

"Yes. It ranges anywhere from Mallory, who has just a slight cough, to the triplets, who have the full blown flu. Everyone isn't feeling well in one way or another."

Dawn didn't know how to respond to that so she didn't say anything and just nodded.

"So everyone's upstairs. You and Mallory-she can help you with things, she doesn't need to stay in bed-can make soup for dinner around 5:00. Everything's on the counter. The triplets can each have two children's aspirin with supper and everyone else can have one. Right after supper, Margo and Claire both need to take a bath. Claire first then Margo."

"Okay."

"Margo and Claire go to bed around 8:00, Vanessa and Nicky around 8:45 and the triplets at 9:15. Before you put each one to bed, take the temperatures and if they have a high fever try and convince them to use a cool washcloth. Everyone has their own thermometer in a marked cup. I think that's it. Do you have any questions Dawn?"

Dawn thought for a moment and then said, "I have one. Could you briefly explain what each of the kids has? Just so I know."

Mrs. Pike smiled. "Of course. Mal, like I said, has just a slight cough and the triplets have the flu-fever, chills, cough, headache, sore throat, that sort of thing. Vanessa has a low fever and a headache, Nicky is really achy with a sore throat, Margo and Claire both have runny noses and they said their heads hurt."

"Okay. Got it."

"Don't hesitate to call us for anything. The number is on the fridge, next to the number for the doctor. However, the doctor's office will probably tell you that if anyone is really sick to take them to the hospital because it's after hours."

"Okay."

"John, you almost ready?" Mrs. Pike called. Mr. Pike appeared at the top of the stairs.

"Yep. You ready? Hi Dawn."

"Hi."

"We should be going. Thanks again Dawn."

"No problem. Have a good time."

"Thanks. 'Bye."

"'Bye."

Mr. and Mrs. Pike left and Dawn took a breathe, trying to process all the information that was just thrown at her. Dawn didn't want to be mad at Mr. and Mrs. Pike for throwing this at her. She didn't mind as long as she didn't get sick. She went into the kitchen and found a pen and wrote down everything Mrs. Pike had just told her. While she was writing, Mal came into the kitchen.

"Hey Dawn."

"Mal. How are you feeling?"

"Okay. Not nearly as bad as my brothers."

"I guess not."

"So you got everything?"

"I think so. How on earth did your family manage to all get sick?"

"It's easier than you think. One brings home the germs and we all get it. Also, the flu is really spreading. Kids are being sent home from school left, right, and center."

"I know. I passed the nurses office today and there was an actual line up."

"Yeah. So let me guess. Mom left soup for supper."

"Right."

Mal groaned and Dawn smiled.

"It's not so bad. We should probably get supper started if we need to eat at five. Why don't you watch the soup while I butter bread and set the trays?"

"Sounds good."

Mal went to the stove and put the pot of soup, which was out on the counter, onto the burner. Dawn went to the cupboard and pulled out a loaf of bread. She buttered fourteen pieces of bread-two apiece-and then got out seven trays. She put the bread on them, along with cups of milk. She decided to visit each child individually and give them the medicine to make sure they took it.

"Soup's ready." Mal said. Mal and Dawn divided the soup into eight bowls and put seven on them the trays.

"Don't you want any?" Mal asked and Dawn shook her head.

"Okay." Mal put the pot back on the warm burner, being sure to turn the handle back. Then she took a tray and she and Dawn went upstairs. They started with Claire and Margo and Dawn gave them their pills. Dawn and Mal made three more trips upstairs with trays and gave everyone their pills and food.

Once the food was delivered and everyone was slurping soup, Mal sat down in the kitchen with her soup and Dawn collapsed into a kitchen chair and sighed.

"I don't know how your mom does this 24/7 Mal. It's tiring."

"I know."

They sat there in silence until Dawn heard Margo and Claire calling that they were done. Dawn went upstairs and took their trays downstairs again.

"Do you want to get everyone else's stuff? I have to start a bath for Claire." Dawn said.

"Sure. I'll start the dishes when everything's down here."

"Great. Thanks Mal."

Dawn headed upstairs and went into Claire and Margo's room and found them both looking at books.

"Hello girls. What are you reading?"

"Little Red Riding Hood."

"Princess and the Pea."

"I see. Well, you both need to take a bath."

"Who's first?"

"Claire."

"Okay Dawn Silly-Billy-Goo-Goo."

Claire got out of bed and followed Dawn to the bathroom, where she ran a luke-warm bath. When the tub was half full, Dawn turned the water on and helped Claire in. She let Claire play for about ten minutes and then she washed her hair and helped her out of the tub. She got Claire into fuzzy clean PJ's and then ran a second bath for Margo. She let Margo was her own hair and then Dawn found clean PJ's for Margo and helped her back into bed after braiding her hair.

"I'll be back soon, okay?"

"Can Mallory tuck us in?" Claire asked.

"Sure."

Dawn went downstairs and found Mal just finishing up the dishes.

"Claire and Margo want you to tuck them in."

"Okay."

"Make sure you take their temperatures okay?"

"Gotcha."

Mal went upstairs and Dawn finished up drying the dishes and put them away. She went to the bottom of the stairs and called up,

"Anyone need anything?"

"Juice."

"A book."

"For Nicky to get out of the bathroom."

"Kleenex."

Dawn sighed and then got some juice and Kleenex and found a couple of chapter books on the kitchen table and took them all upstairs. She went into see Vanessa and handed her the couple of books.

"Hope one of these is good." Dawn said, smiling.

"Thanks Dawn."

"No problem. Just holler if you need anything."

Dawn went to the triplets room and found Nicky back in his bed so she assumed that whoever had needed the bathroom had gotten it.

"Who needed juice?" she asked.

"Me." Byron reached out and took the glass of juice from Dawn.

"Who wanted Kleenex?"

"Me please." Jordan said. Dawn handed him the box.

"Thanks."

"Not a problem. Anything else?"

"No thanks." the boys said and Dawn left the room, where Mal joined her in the hallway.

"How are Margo and Claire?"

"Fine. Temperatures are both under one hundred but not normal yet."

"Okay. In about half an hour we need to get Vanessa and Nicky into bed."

"We may as well put the triplets to bed as well. They're all so tired they won't even mind."

"That's not a bad idea. That way we can turn the light off for Nicky right away."

"So what do we do now?"

"Well, I'm just going to jot down everyone's temperature because I'm not going to remember seven different readings. After that, whatever we want until 8:45."

"Sweet."

"Pretty easy baby-sitting, that's for sure."

"I wish every job could be this easy."

"Yeah, but I hope it's not because everyone's sick."

"I know. I don't often feel compassion for my brothers but right now I feel so bad for them. They're so miserable that they aren't even teasing Nicky."

"You sound like Kristy."

Dawn had joined Mallory, who was sitting at the kitchen table.

"What do you mean?"

"Mary Anne told me that yesterday Kristy felt sorry for Alan."

"Alan _Grey_?!"

"Yeah. She saw him in the nurses' office."

"Wow."

"I know. I hope that this bug doesn't spread much further. I hate seeing people sick."

"It's even worse being sick."

"It is." Dawn agreed and then she checked her watch. "I wonder how the BSC meeting went."

"Yeah. What time is it?"

"Time for us to start our rounds."  
Dawn stood up and so did Mallory.

"You want to do Vanessa?" Dawn asked.

"Sure. You can be the one to tell the triplets about their new bedtime."

"Fair enough."

Dawn and Mal went upstairs and Mal went to Vanessa's room and Dawn detoured into the boys' room.

"Okay guys. Bedtime."

According to Dawn, the boys were too tired to even argue what she said. They just settled themselves into their beds, closing books and putting down action figures.

"Wow. You guys must be feeling pretty awful if you don't even care that it's time to go to bed. But first, before we turn the lights off, we need to take temperatures."

This caused a moan to rise from the boys. Dawn grinned.

"Sorry guys. Thermometers all around."

Dawn distributed thermometers and then waited, tidying up the room as she did. Three minutes later she checked the thermometers and managed to convince the triplets to at least have a cool cloth on hand. She turned off the light and went downstairs where she found Mal reading a book.

"And?" Mal asked as Dawn started writing things down.

"Let's see. Nicky was at 100.5, Byron 102.3, Jordan 101.9, and Adam 103.2. What was Vanessa?"

"99.8. Did you convince the triplets to have a wash cloth?"

"They each have one but I didn't make them wear it or anything."

"Smart move. Man, I'm tired." Mal said followed by a yawn. Dawn looked up.

"You know Mal, your mom said that you also had a cold. You can go to bed if you want. I'll be fine until your parents come home."

"You sure Dawn?"

"Yep. Go to bed."

"Okay. Thanks Dawn."

"No problem. Feel better."

"Thanks."

Mal went upstairs and Dawn sat down on the couch with a book. Around 9:00, she went upstairs and found all of the Pikes sound asleep.


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter Eight**

While Dawn and Mal were baby-sitting the ill Pike gang, Kristy had managed up the courage to call Alan. She and I had talked about it at lunch together while we were supposed to be studying for our English test.

We were sitting in the corner of the library and while I was reading, Kristy was staring off into space.

"Mary Anne…" Kristy ventured. I looked up.

"Yeah?"

"Never mind." Kristy went back to the book on her lap but when I looked up thirty seconds later, she was starring into space again.

"Kristy, what's wrong?" I asked. Kristy sighed.

"I can't get Alan out of my head. Is that normal, Mary Anne? The guy I despise most I'm worrying about."

I had to smile; it was rare to see a moment of weakness in Kristy, especially when she was feeling something for a guy who was sick.

"Sure, it's normal." I said, patting her hand. "I think it shows that you like him more than you want to admit. It's the same thing I felt with Logan. I was worried about him."

"I'm not exactly worried about him…more thinking. I'm sure someone of Alan's caliber will rebound. The thoughts of all the mean things he can do to me will egg him on to get better so he can come to school again and torment me."

"Why don't you call him and just say you're thinking of him and hope he gets well soon?" I suggested. I thought Kristy would've blown the idea right out the window. _Her_ calling _Alan_; the idea was almost unheard of. However, Kristy surprised me.

"I may just do more than that." She said and then took off running. I grabbed my purse, and leaving our open books on the table, ran after her. I caught up to her when she was at the pay phone. She was looking up a number in the phone book and then slipped a couple quarters into the slot and dialed.

"Hello? Alan? This is Kristy…I was, um, wondering, if anyone was bringing you your homework?...Okay…I'll be by after school with it. 'Bye."

Kristy hung up the phone and looked at me. I couldn't tell if she wanted to laugh or cry.

"Good job, Kristy." I said.

"Good job for what?" Logan asked, coming up from behind me. He was out of breath and sweaty because he had been playing ball in the gym. I looked at Kristy and she shook her head slightly.

"Nothing. She reminded me of something to do." I said, turning to face Logan. He smiled at me and I was reminded of the feelings I had felt when Logan had looked that flushed and sweaty and not because of sports. I felt bad for Kristy and although I didn't tell her, the feelings were only going to get worse once she saw Alan.

*******

Kristy gripped my hand nervously. We were standing outside of Alan's house.

"Mary Anne? I'm nervous."

"Kristy. It's okay. You're just giving him his homework. He won't expect you to visit for long."

"I know. But I'm still nervous. I've never been in a boy's bedroom before."

"Sure you have. You've been in your brothers and what about all the boys we've baby-sat for? It's going to be fine, Kristy. Calm down."

Kristy took a few deep breathes and then went up the walk. She glanced at me one more time and I gave her an encouraging smile. She smiled back and rang the doorbell. I turned and walked towards Claudia's house. I knew she was home and Kristy planned to come as soon as she was done at Alan's and then stay until the meeting. I made it to Claudia's and rang the bell. Claudia was waiting to me and together we ran into her room and watched the street, waiting for Kristy to come. We waited so long that we got stiff necks and had to move. Claudia went under the bed and came up with a bag of Tortilla chips, which she opened and then she sat next to be on the bed.

"What do you think happened to her?" Claudia asked.

"I don't know. Kristy and Alan…interesting combination."

"Yeah. Kristy was so nervous to see him."

"Hard to see Kristy nervous." Claudia said and giggled.

"It is but I happen to know what she's feeling isn't the best. I felt the same way when Logan was sick."

"I hope she doesn't start the waterworks. It's so awkward when Kristy cries. No one knows what to say to her."

"No one knows what to say to who?"

Claudia and I both turned our heads towards the door. Kristy was standing with her hands on her hips.

"Kristy! You scared me!" Claudia said. "Who let you in?"

"I let myself in." Kristy said, grabbing some chips.

"How'd it go?" I asked. Kristy sighed.

"I understand how you felt now, Mary Anne. He just looked so vulnerable and, well, kind of cute. I've never seen that side of Alan."

"How are you feeling about him now?" Claudia asked, her eyes shining.

"Confused. I like him when he can't hurt me and when he's so weak and cute-looking but I can't stand him when he's pulling my hair and telling Mr. Peters that David Michael ate my homework."

"Well, maybe try to talk to him when he gets better." I said. "Or maybe wait and see what he does. He must have some feelings of his own."

"Good idea. Where is everyone? It's almost 5:30." Kristy commenting, closing the subject of Alan. I smiled and then looked at the record book.

"Well, Mal and Dawn aren't coming because they're sitting and Jessi has ballet this afternoon so she'll be either just in time or late. And Stacey-"

"What about Stacey?" Stacey asked, coming in.

"-is right there." I said, giggling. Stacey looked confused.

"Never mind." Claud said, passing Stacey some pretzels.

"Thanks." Stacey flopped onto the bed and before we knew it, the meeting had started.

"Did you guys do anything interesting in your classes?" Kristy asked. It was 5:45 and we had dealt with club business and the phone had only rung once.

"Nope."

"Nadda."

"I wouldn't know. I wasn't paying attention." We all laughed at what Claudia had said.

"I guess this flu thing is really hitting all of Stoneybrook."

"Guess what. When I was in like, fourth grade or something, there was this really bad spiel of the chicken pox going around. So many people from my school—staff included---got sick that they closed the school."

"Really? You think they'll do that here?" Claudia asked, her voice full of hope.

Stacey shrugged. "I don't know. Is there much point in opening the school when only 1/3 of the student body is there and less than half of the staff can teach?"

"I see you point." Kristy said. "But I don't think they'll do that too hastily."

"No, probably not." I put in. "Let's just hope it doesn't get that bad to begin with."

The rest of the meeting went without another single phone call.

_A/N: I know a lot of you have been waiting for an update and I'm SO SORRY it took so long. I can't say when the next chapter's going to be up but thank you for your patience! Please review!!!_


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter Nine**

By Monday, it seemed the entire town was down with this flu bug. On the walk to school, there were fewer kids walking as well as getting off the buses. The halls were empty-so much that it almost felt like a ghost town. Dawn and I were late walking to homeroom but we still made it in plenty of time due to the fact that we didn't have to shove our way through the crowded halls.

We entered the classroom and took our choice of seats. By the time the bell rang, there were only six other students as well as a substitute teacher. The substitute explained the Mr. Blake was out sick and then handed out questions to do on the next four chapters on _The Pearl_ (we had finished _The Red Pony_ and moved onto another one of John Steinbeck's books). Dawn rolled her eyes at me as she passed me a question booklet and I returned her look of disgust. I may like school but there is nothing worse than spending a period sitting in a desk answering questions on what you've read.

Finally, after what seemed like ages, the bell rang. With a sigh of relief, I got up and Dawn and I walked out of the room. We took our sweet time and still managed to be early for second period. We sat down, again in our choice of seats. Again, there was a substitute. She said that our teacher was out sick and wanted us to read chapter four and then answer questions. I groaned. It was going to be a _very_ long morning.

By the time I made it to the cafeteria for lunch, I thought my head would explode. I had gone through four periods of doing nothing but reading and answering questions. It seemed as though every teacher was out sick and the few who weren't didn't want to move ahead. Ergo, they had all assigned questions.

I walked through the doors of the cafeteria and saw it almost empty. I made my way through the sea of empty chairs to where Kristy, Dawn, Claudia and Stacey were sitting. I knew Logan wouldn't be joining us—something to do with the basketball team. I sat down and put my head in my arms.

"What's wrong, Mary Anne?" Stacey asked. I raised my head.

"I am SO bored!" I exclaimed and Stacey laughed.

"I know how you feel. All I'm doing in my classes is reading and…"

"…answering questions!" Dawn finished Stacey's sentence.

"Well, I'm not bored. I wish school was like this all the time." Claudia put in.

"I don't. I'd rather pick pieces of lint of my socks all day that have school be like this year long." Dawn responded.

I opened up my lunch bag and began pulling out my lunch. As I was arranging it, I looked at Kristy. She was staring into space.

"Kristy?" I asked, unwrapping my sandwich. Kristy beamed back down to earth.

"What?"

"Are you okay?" I asked, taking a bite. Kristy nodded.

"I'm fine." She said with an enormous sigh.

"You don't sound fine." Claudia observed.

"Okay, fine. I'm worried about Alan."

"Is he still sick?" Stacey asked. Kristy nodded.

"I'm sorry." I said. "I know how you feel."

"Just think of it this way." Claudia said. "If he's not here, then he can't be mean to you."

"I would rather have him teasing me than knowing that he's at home sick."

"Don't worry, Kristy. He'll be fine." Dawn said encouragingly.

"Why don't you go and see him this afternoon?" I suggested. "I'm sure he'll like the company."

"Who'll like the company?" Logan asked, sitting down with a tray full of food.

I glanced at Kristy, who was shaking her head at me. She was also turning a dark shade of red, which surprised me. Kristy hardly ever blushes. I don't know if Logan noticed or not but if he did, he didn't say anything about it.

"Uh…" I stumbled and began to cough.

"You okay?" Logan asked me with a smile.

"I'm fine. I thought you had a basketball thing?" I asked. Logan nodded and swallowed.

"I did. But we cancelled the scrimmage. Not enough guys."

"Too bad." Stacey said. Logan shrugged.

"It's not that big of a deal. I'm actually kinda relieved. I don't want to overwork myself."

"Smart thinking." Kristy said, her face back it's normal shade. Logan nodded.

"There's no way I want to feel that sick again. Can you believe all the people who are absent?"

"It's crazy." Claudia commented.

"We were just saying how all we've done this morning is reading and answering questions." Dawn told Logan.

"I know. It's all I've done too. People better start getting better fast because I don't know how much longer I can take this. It's so quiet it's almost eerie."

"I agree. But at least it's nice being able to walk down the halls and not get bumped and shoved." I pointed out.

"I still wish things would get back to normal." Kristy said.

"They will soon." Stacey said as the bell rang. I groaned. I was not ready to go to another class. But like it or not, I soon found myself in my next class. At least Logan was in the class with me. As soon as the teacher had handed out another set of questions, he slipped me a note. I quietly opened it and read it.

_What was with Kristy at lunch? _

I wrote back.

_Nothing. She's going to visit Alan after school is all. But don't tell her I told you._

I slipped Logan the note and we continued our conversation all through the period via note.

Logan: _Oh. That's nice of her. Is that who'll appreciate the company? And I won't tell ;)_

Mary Anne:_ Yeah. And thanks 3_

Logan: _No problem. I know for me, it was the highlight of my day when you came. I'm sure Kristy will do the same for Alan. Is she freaking out over it?_

Mary Anne: _A little bit. She's nervous because she and Alan usually don't get along. At least, not like this._

Logan: _I understand. I'm sure she'll be fine and I'm sure Alan will like it._

Mary Anne: _What do you mean?_

Logan: _I know a few things…_

Mary Anne: _Like what?_

Logan: _Well…Alan picks on Kristy to try and get her attention. But you can't tell anyone I told you!_

Mary Anne: _I won't. So it's true that if a guy likes a girl he'll tease her?_

Logan: _Maybe…_

I was just about to write a response for Logan when the bell rang. As much as note passing had helped pass the time, I was not ready for another period. I stood up and smiled at Logan. He smiled back.

"I love you, Mary Anne." He said softly.

"I love you, too." I replied. Logan slipped his arm around my shoulders and together we walked out of the class room.


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter Ten**

I have never been so relieved to hear the final bell. At the end of my last class, it was like the entire school, including the staff, let out a collective sigh. I walked to my locker and put my books away, zipped into my coat and then made my way to Kristy's locker. I was going to walk with her to Alan's house again.

"Ready?" I asked her as I approached her locker.

"Ready." Kristy said, slamming her locker closed.

"You sure?" I asked her. She seemed awfully confident and calm compared to the Kristy I had seen at lunch.

"No, but I have to do this."

"No, you don't. We could go to my house instead." I pointed out as we walked to the front doors. On the way, we passed Logan. He was about to call out to me but I met his eye and shook my head ever so slightly. He smiled, waved and then turned around and went back down the hallway. Kristy gave me a Look.

"Don't even tempt me, Mary Anne." She said.

"Sorry." I said, trying to keep a straight face. Obviously I wasn't successful.

"It's not funny!" Kristy exclaimed.

"Sorry, Kristy. This is just…so unlike you."

"Well, did I laugh at you when Logan was the one who was sick?" she asked.

"No, no you didn't. And I'm not laughing at you now. I'm here to support you."

"Hmph." Was all Kristy could come up with. We walked in silence all the way to Alan's house, where we stopped in front of the steps.

"Do you want me to come with you?" I offered. Kristy considered it for a moment but then shook her head.

"No. Thanks, but I have to do this by myself. I'll see you at Claud's in about an hour?" she asked and I nodded. I watched as Kristy walked up the walk and before she rang the bell, she turned and gave me a small wave. I gave her the thumbs-up sign and started to walk away. A few seconds later, I turned to see Kristy walking through the front door. I was about to turn back but something caught my eye. In an upstairs window, I sat the corner of a shade turned back and I could make out the faint trace of Alan's face. I smiled and then continued to my house.

After Kristy had turned away from me, she took a deep breath and rang the bell. A moment later the door opened and Mrs. Gray invited her in. As she closed the door she said,

"Alan is looking forward to seeing you. He's in his room."

She gestured towards the stairs.

"Thanks." Kristy said, shrugging off her overcoat. Mrs. Gray took the coat and went to hang it up. Kristy took a deep breath and walked up the stairs with determination. She knocked on Alan's door.

"Come in."

Kristy cautiously opened the door.

"Hi Kristy." Alan said from his bed. Kristy walked into the room.

"Hey, Alan. How're you feeling?" She felt uncomfortable.

"Not bad. I might go to school tomorrow. If not tomorrow, then defiantly on Wednesday."

"That's good." Kristy forced a smile.

"But, man, am I glad you're here. I'm so bored!" Alan exclaimed.

"I bet." Kristy said, slowly becoming more comfortable in her surroundings.

"I have your homework for you, if that helps."

Alan laughed.

"It'll give me something to do but I'm sure I'll still be bored."

"Well, you're not the only one who's been bored today." Kristy said with a smile.

"What do you mean?" Alan asked.

Kristy took a seat at the desk chair.

"Well, there was practically no one at school today so the teachers, or substitute teachers, gave us questions to do on reading. That's what we did in every class besides gym."

"Thank goodness for gym."

Kristy laughed.

"My thoughts exactly. But that's all your homework. Just answering questions. You could probably get away with not even doing it."

Alan gasped in pretend shock.

"Did I hear you right? Kristy Thomas is saying that I shouldn't even bother doing my homework?"

Kristy had to smile. She knew Alan was feeling better again because he was starting to tease her again.

"I'm not saying you shouldn't, just that you could." She said with a smile.

"I'm glad you're feeling better. You worried me. You didn't even tease me when I was here on Friday."

Alan looked down sheepishly and Kristy was pretty sure she saw a flush creep up his cheeks.

"Well, I'm glad too." Alan said after a moment. "Just wait until I'm back in school. Then I'll have a whole week's worth of teasing to make up for."

"I can hardly wait." Kristy said with fake enthusiasm. Although the truth was, deep down, Kristy couldn't wait for that to happen again. Because that meant everything was back to normal.

"I'd better get going." Kristy said after an awkward pause.

"Yeah." Alan said, with a hint of disappointment in his voice. Kristy stood up.

"See you." She said, awkwardness filling the room by the second.

"See ya. And thanks for coming."

"No problem."

Kristy took the opportunity to make her escape. She closed Alan's door and began to go down the stairs and then remembered. She went back up the stairs and knocked on the door again.

"Come in." Alan called. Kristy opened the door.

"Uh, sorry. I forgot to give you your homework."

"Oh, right." Alan said.

Kristy reached into her backpack and pulled out a package of papers. She crossed the room and handed them to Alan.

"Thanks."

"Uh, no problem." Kristy said in a rush and she quickly left the room. After closing the door for a second time, she sighed and closed her eyes momentarily. She then walked down the stairs, said good-bye to Mrs. Gray and left. What she didn't see as she walked towards Claud's house was Alan watching from his window.

_A/N: I'm so sorry it has taken this long for an update but today I got the inspiration to finish the story so the end should be coming up soon! Please R&R!_


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter Eleven**

Stacey

I can't believe they actually closed school today! I mean…I guess I believe it. After the amount of students in school yesterday plus another phone-call free meeting, I guess it's understandable. It seems like the whole town of Stoneybrook is down with the flu. Anyway, once I found out school was closed, I called Mrs. Hobart to see if she still wanted me to sit this afternoon…

Stacey was just as surprised as the rest of us when we woke up this morning to find that school had been closed. She was glad to have a day to herself but she had had a job scheduled for that afternoon for over a month with the Hobarts. The Hobarts have four kids. Ben is eleven, James is eight, Matthew is six and Johnny is four. All the Hobarts speak with an Australian accent. I think Mr. and Mrs. Hobart had an important meeting to attend in Stanford. So around ten o'clock, Stacey dialed the Hobart's number.

"Hello?" Mrs. Hobart answered.

"Hi, Mrs. Hobart? It's Stacey."

"Hi, Stacey. I was actually just about to call you."

"What can I do for you?" Stacey asked politely.

"I just wanted to ask you if you were still up for tonight's sitting job."

"I'm fine." Stacey answered.

"I'm glad you're well, dear. But I want to tell you that all four boys have come down with this flu bug. Now, I totally understand if you don't want to sit this evening."

"Thank you for letting me know. However, I'm fine baby-sitting tonight, even if the boys are sick."

"Are you sure?"

"Absolutely." Stacey's voice held more confidence that she actually felt. She was one of those at the meeting who had felt that the club shouldn't sit for sick children. However, Kristy had said we would and so that's what Stacey would do.

"Oh, thank you, Stacey. You're a lifesaver. I don't know what I would've done if my husband and I couldn't attend this meeting. We'll pay you extra, of course." Mrs. Hobart added.

"Thanks, but that's not necessary." Stacey said. "I just hope everyone gets better soon."

"That makes two of us."

"So I'll see you around three o'clock?" Stacey asked.

"That's perfect. Thanks Stacey."

"No problem. 'Bye."

"'Bye."

Stacey hung up the phone and shuffled off to take a shower. Before she knew it, it was 2:55 and Stacey was standing on the Hobart's door step, ringing the bell. She had stocked her Kid-Kit with books and games that could all be played in bed or on the couch. Mrs. Hobart answered the door.

"Hi Stacey. Come on in." she opened the door and Stacey walked it. She put her Kid-Kit on the ground and took off her coat. Mrs. Hobart took Stacey's coat and hung it up and then walked into the kitchen. Stacey followed her.

"I've written up a list of instructions for you." She said, indicating to a piece of paper on the table. Stacey glanced at it and then turned back to Mrs. Hobart, who was still talking.

"All four boys have been laid up with the flu for the past two days, so they're starting to be on the mend. Let's see…Ben and James are upstairs, Matthew is in the den and Johnny is in the rec room. At four o'clock, it's Ben's turn to get the TV in the rec room and Matthew gets the one in the den. At five, the TV's are off for the night."

Stacey nodded to show that she was following Mrs. Hobart's instructions.

"For supper, there's chicken strips and French-fries in the freezer. Just stick them in the oven for half an hour or so. After supper, there's some ice cream for dessert. After supper, all the boys should be in their rooms. They don't have to be in bed but they do need to be resting. Johnny needs a bath around seven and his bed time is seven thirty, Matthew's is at eight, James is at eight-thirty and Ben's is at nine. But Mr. Hobart and I should be home between eight-thirty and nine so don't worry about making sure Ben's in bed."

Mrs. Hobart paused and Stacey took a deep breath. This was a lot of information to absorb.

"Oh yes. When you put the boys to bed, they can each have some Children's Tylenol. I've written how much each boy can take. I think that's all…any questions, Stacey?"

Stacey thought for a moment.

"Just one."

Mrs. Hobart nodded and Stacey continued.

"Where do you keep your thermometer and things like that? Just in case."

Mrs. Hobart smiled.

"It's all out in the upstairs bathroom."

Stacey nodded.

"Okay. Then I think we're all set."

"Great. I posted my husband's cell number on the fridge. It's the only way you'll be able to reach us. However, I've told Mrs. Perkins what's going on and if you need any help, she's home all evening."

Stacey nodded and watched at Mrs. Hobart gathered her things, called good-bye to her boys and finally left. After the door closed, Stacey took another deep breath. She looked at the sheet of instructions and read them carefully. She then ventured into the den and found Matthew bundled in a blanket on the couch.

"Hey Matthew." She said. Matthew turned to look at her.

"Hi." He said, lifelessly.

"How're you doing?" Stacey asked. Matthew shrugged.

"That good?" Stacey asked and Matthew smiled and nodded.

"Do you need anything?" Stacey asked and Matthew shook his head.

"Okay. Call if you do." Stacey said as she left the den and made her way to the rec room, where she found Johnny, also bundled up in a blanket. However, Johnny was fast asleep. Stacey smiled and quietly clicked off the TV. She carefully lifted Johnny and carried him upstairs, where she tucked him into his bed. She then went and checked on Ben and Matthew. Ben was reading and James was napping.

Stacey stood at the top of the stairs and wondered what she should do. Finally, she decided to go join Matthew. She and Matthew watched in silence until it was four o'clock. She watched as Matthew headed upstairs and Ben and James, who had woken up from his nap, stumbled downstairs. She knew the boys must still be feeling pretty crummy because this all took place without any arguing. Again, Stacey joined James. She chose to let Ben be because Ben is at the point where he doesn't feel he needs baby-sitters anymore and Stacey respected that. She and James watched _The Cosby Show_ until five. She watched in amazement as both boys, without being told, turned the TV's off and headed back upstairs. Obviously, there were getting accustomed to the "sick routine".

Shaking her head, Stacey went and got dinner ready. It took her four trips to carry the four trays upstairs. By the time Johnny had his dinner, Ben was done. Stacey waited until all four boys were done and then brought up four bowls of vanilla ice-cream and the toppings for ice cream sundaes. She let each boy make his own sundae and then went downstairs and began the dishes. Once she finished with the supper dishes, she left the sink with water in it and went to collect the ice cream dishes. She smiled as she found all four boys snoring softly. She quietly gathered their bowls and spoons and went downstairs. After washing them, she tidied up the den and rec room. By that time it was almost seven o'clock, so she went upstairs. She drew a bath for Johnny and then carried him to the bathroom. He was still groggy from his nap and Stacey felt terrible for waking him. She quickly gave him his bath, slipped him into clean pajamas and carried him back to his bed.

"I'll be right back, okay?" she said softly as she pulled the quilt up around Johnny again. Johnny nodded. Stacey ran downstairs and returned with the Children's Tylenol and the sheet of instructions. She gave Johnny his medicine. Just as she was about to leave the room, Matthew stirred (Johnny and Matthew share a room). She waited a moment to see if Matthew was awake.

"Stacey?" Matthew whispered. Stacey walked over to his bed.

"Hey." She said, smiling. "Did you have a good sleep?"

Matthew nodded and yawned.

"I think I'm gonna go back to sleep."

"Okay. But first…." Stacey held up the bottle of Tylenol. Matthew made a face but accepted the medicine. Stacey stood up and pulled up Matthew's quilt. She quietly left the room, making a mental note of what time Johnny and Matthew took their medicine. Stacey peeked in on James and Ben and found them still sleeping. She decided not to wake them and went downstairs. She jotted down what had happened on the piece of paper and then began reading her book. Every half-hour or so, she went up and checked on the boys and each time, they were all sleeping soundly.

Mr. and Mrs. Hobart arrived home at about eight-forty-five.

"Hello." Mrs. Hobart greeted Stacey. "How'd it go?"

Stacey filled her in and then Mrs. Hobart paid her. Stacey protested as Mrs. Hobart handed her a little extra but Mrs. Hobart pressed the bill into her hand.

"You've earned it, Stacey."

"Well, uh, thank you." Stacey said. Mrs. Hobart smiled and then Mr. Hobart drove her home.


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter Twelve**

We were all quite surprised when we heard on the radio that school had been closed due to "an outbreak of influenza", as the radio announcer called it. Stacey was the only one had a job booked. She and Mal were the only ones busy (Mal's cold turned into the full blown flu) so I asked my dad if Dawn and I could have our friends over for the afternoon, and possibly, if we were lucky, a pizza party. Surprisingly, he said yes. So I called Jessi, Kristy, Claudia and Logan. They were all able to come, but Logan had to leave at three o'clock. So, around noon, our doorbell rang.

I ran to answer it and let Kristy it. She waved at Watson, who had brought her over.

"Hi." I said.

"Hi. I can't tell you how happy I am to get out of my house. All my brothers have the flu, and believe me, when Charlie and Sam get sick, it is not fun."

"Too bad." I said, opening the door for Logan, whom I had spotted walking up the driveway.

"Hey Mary Anne. Hi Kristy."

"Hi."

I took both Kristy and Logan's coat and piled them on a chair in the den. We continued into the den and just as I sat down, the doorbell rang again.

"That's probably Claudia." I said, getting up. I ran to the front door and let in Claudia _and_ Jessi.

"Everyone else is here already." I said, taking their coats.

Soon, we were all digging into these great whole-grain nachos that Dawn had made, laughing and gabbing. After food was taken care of, we sat around and just talked. We talked about Kristy's Krushers (a softball team she coaches for little kids), which would be starting up again in the next couple of weeks. We talked about the afternoon of boredom we had experienced the day before. That prompted Jessi to ask, to no one in particular,

"I wonder if there's going to be school tomorrow?"

"I would count on it." Logan said. "This flu bug is nasty, but it's also relatively short-lived. People should be getting better by now."

"But what if they're just catching it?" Claudia asked. Logan shrugged.

"So many people have had it already. I'd say that those who are going to get will have gotten it already." Kristy spoke up.

"I don't know." Jessi said. "Becca came down with it just this morning."

We fell into silence but soon Dawn suggested a game of Twister.

"Twister?" Claudia asked. "Isn't that a game for little kids?"

"Well, what have you got to do that's better? We're running out of things to talk about." Dawn replied.

"Come on, Claud. It'll be fun." Kristy said.

"Well…" Claudia debated. "Okay. But don't laugh at me when I look completely silly."

"Jessi? Logan? You in?" Dawn asked. They both nodded.

"Great. I'll be right back." Dawn ran up to her Kid-Kit, where she grabbed the game. Pretty soon, we were all tangled into one big, human knot. Logan had volunteered to be our first spinner.

"Claudia, left foot blue."

Poor Claudia was stretched out over the entire board, sandwiched between Dawn and Kristy. She tried to reach her left foot from a red circle to a blue one but slipped and fell. As a result, the rest of us collapsed on top of her.

"I told you I'd look silly." Claudia complained from the bottom of the heap. The rest of us just laughed and soon Claudia joined in.

"I'm spinning this time." She said, once we had straightened ourselves out. And so another game began. And another one after that. In the middle of our fourth game, Logan asked what time it was. I tried to look at my watch but ended up causing everyone to fall when I lost my balance. We laughed, and then I told Logan it was ten to three.

"I'd better go." Logan said, finding his coat in the pile.

"See you, everyone." He called as he made his way to the door. I followed him as the rest of the girls called out good-bye.

"Thanks, Mary Anne. That was fun."

"No problem. I'll see you tomorrow?" I asked, opening the door. Logan nodded and leaned over and kissed my cheek and then entered the cold, white world. I closed the door and returned to my friends. We played a few more games of Twister, but with the loss of a player, the game became easier. Soon, we were Twister-ed out. We packed up the box and then laid on the floor in a circle, with our heads in the middle.

"That was fun." Jessi said. We all "mhmm-ed" in agreement. We laid there in silence for a few moments until Claudia spoke up.

"How was Alan yesterday?" Claudia asked.

"He's getting better."

"That's good." Dawn said.

"Yeah, it is. In fact, I know he's almost better because he started to tease me again."

We laughed. After the laughter died down, I spoke up.

"You know, he really appreciated your visits."

"How do you know?" Kristy asked.

"When I was walking away from the house, right before you went in, I saw Alan watching for you from his window." I said. Of course, the other girls squealed with excitement.

"Really?" Kristy asked.

"Yeah."

"Aww." Kristy sounded touched.

"Kristy! You just 'awed' over a boy!" Claudia exclaimed.

"So?"

"So…that means you like him." Claudia sounded excited.

"It does not."

"It does."

"Does not."

"Does."

Kristy waited a moment.

"Fine, so maybe I like him, just a little bit. But only because he was sick." Kristy added on.

"Sure, sure." Jessi said.

"Why is that?" Kristy asked.

"Why is what?" Dawn asked.

"Why do guys, when they're sick, sound so much more appealing. I mean, he even looked cuter, laying there in bed."

"I guess it's because that's when they're vulnerable. It's when they're willing to admit they need help." I said.

"And," Dawn added. "As sexist as it is, it's girls they allow to take care of them. Not other guys."

"True." Kristy said. "Enough laying around."

Kristy sat up, prompting us to do the same and closing the subject. She turned to me.

"What else can have you got we can play?"

I grinned. It was so like Kristy to put an end to the mushy stuff like that.

In the end, we ended up playing Monopoly for the rest of the evening. And Kristy must've been really set on not letting the subject come up again because she won three games straight.


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter Thirteen**

I woke up on Wednesday morning and rolled over in bed. Upon remembering that school had been closed the day before, I reached over and turned on my radio. I listened for about ten minutes without hearing anything about school being closed again so I decided I'd better get up. I got ready and soon Dawn and I were walking out the door. On the way, we joined up with Claudia and Logan. We noticed that more kids were walking to school today than there had been on Monday or Friday.

"Maybe this is a good sign." Dawn said.

"Let's hope so." Logan replied. "I don't think I could take another day like Monday."

"Me either." I said.

We chatted until we reached school. When we walked through the front doors, we parted ways. As I made my way to my locker, I noticed that the halls were twice as full as the day before. I also noticed several homeroom doors were open, meaning a teacher was already in there, preparing for this morning's classes.

I was putting my books in my locker when someone tapped me on the shoulder. I turned around and saw Alan standing there. I smiled at him and he sort of smiled back.

"Hey. Glad you're feeling better." I said.

"Thanks. Do you know where Kristy is?" Alan got straight to the point.

"Why do you want to know?" I asked, doubt creeping into my voice. Alan shifted uncomfortably.

"I just want to, um, thank her again for bringing my homework the past couple days."

I smiled.

"I don't know where she is but I'm sure she's around here somewhere. Or it could be that her bus was a little late."

Alan shook his head.

"I've already checked. Her bus has already arrived."

"Well, maybe Charlie drove her today. I don't know."

Alan was about to open his mouth but was cut off by the shrill ring of the bell. He waited for the bell to stop ringing and then said,

"Thanks anyways, Mary Anne."

"No problem."

I slammed my locker closed and began making my way through the hallways towards English. Although it wasn't normal, SMS was defiantly coming back to life as it took me a few minutes to make my way to my class.

I was happy to see that, in English, most of our class was back. I sat down with a smile, relieved that I wouldn't have to do questions again. The bell rang and in walked…a substitute. I groaned and put my head on my desk. It was going to be a very long day.

*****

Actually, the day wasn't that long. As it turns out, first period was the only period where my teacher was sick. By the time I made my way to the BSC at lunch, I was almost wishing I was doing questions again. It may have been boring but at least it was easy.

"Hi everyone." I said as I sat down with my tray (I almost never buy hot lunch but we'd been out of almost everything this morning).

"Hi Mary Anne." Everyone said, their voices overlapping each other. I took a few bites of the disgusting food and then looked around.

"It looks like SMS is making a comeback." I said.

"I know." Claudia said with a small pout. "I've had to do work in almost every class!"

We all laughed while Claudia gave another small pout and then took a bite of a Mars Bar.

"It's nice to be back to normal." Stacey said.

"I agree." Dawn said. "It's less depressing."

"You're telling me." Logan said. "There is absolutely nothing more depressing than being stuck in bed."

We all nodded in agreement and then finished up our lunches. As we stood up and gathered our garbage, I noticed that Kristy hadn't joined us.

"Hey, where's Kristy?" I asked.

"I don't know." Dawn said.

"She wasn't in third period." Logan said.

"I haven't seen her all morning." Claudia said.

"Maybe she skipped lunch and is in the library or the gym or something." Stacey suggested.

"Maybe." I said, doubtfully. Kristy never skips meals like that. We got rid of our trash and as we were filling out of the cafeteria, I grabbed Dawn's arm.

"Want to look for Kristy with me?"

Dawn smiled and nodded. We walked around the entire school about three times in fifteen minutes and we still couldn't find her. Dawn and I were passing a hallway and I stopped to looked down it. I didn't spot Kristy but I did see Alan.

"Come on." I said, taking Dawn's hand. I pulled her down the hallway to Alan, who was at his locker (alone, fortunately).

"Hey Mary Anne." He said, looking at me.

"Hey. Did you find Kristy this morning?" I asked.

Alan shook his head.

"No, I didn't find her. Why?"

"Well, we can't find her now. Just wondering if you had seen her."

"Nope."

"Thanks anyways."

I turned with Dawn and we walked back the way we had come.

"Do you think Kristy's sick?" Dawn asked. I thought about it. Kristy had only been absent six days that I could remember. I thought about it more…okay, so Kristy had been absent four of those six days but four days throughout all of elementary and middle school was not a lot. But then again…she wasn't here and our entire town has been hit with this virus.

"I guess it's possible." I said at last.

"I hope she's not." Dawn said.

"Me too."

Since we still had a few minutes left in lunch, we went to the gym and watched the end of a basketball game Logan was playing. As the bell rung, he joined Dawn and I walking out.

"Did you find Kristy?" he asked, panting.

"No, we didn't." Dawn said.

"Do you think she's sick?"

"It's possible. But I'm not jumping to conclusions." I said, my voice confident. It was so unlike Kristy to get sick that I had convinced myself that she wasn't sick. She just wasn't at school. I parted from Logan and Dawn and made my way to my locker, vowing to call her once I got home.


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter Fourteen**

Later that afternoon, Dawn and I made our way to Claudia's house for the BSC meeting. I hadn't called Kristy yet—when I got home, I found that Tigger had thrown up on the Oriental rug. Dawn and I spent the majority of the afternoon trying to clean it. At least we had gotten the stain out. We walked quickly through the brisk air and soon we were running up Kishis' staircase. We ran by Janine's room quickly and then entered Claud's room. We both took a seat-Dawn on the desk chair, me on the bed.

"Hey guys." Claudia said, once she re-appeared from her closet. She held up a bag of chips triumphantly.

"I knew I had them in there."

We giggled as Claudia sat on the bed and opened up the bag of chips.

"Dawn, there's some crackers in the desk drawer for you and Stace."

"Thanks."

Dawn dug around in one of the drawers and came up with a semi-crushed box of Triscuts. I looked at the clock-it was 5:23. We sat and chatted for awhile and by 5:28, Mallory (who, by the way, had totally recovered), Jessi and Stacey were there. We all sat in silence as we watched the door, then the clock, and then we'd all look back to the door. When the clock clicked to 5:29, Stacey said,

"It can't be."

No one said anything. At 5:30, Kristy had still not shown up.

"I guess it is." Claudia said as the phone rang. I reached over and picked it up.

"Hello, Baby Sitters Club."

"I hereby call this meeting to order." A voice on the other end of the line said.

"Kristy!" I exclaimed. "Where are you?"

"At home. I'm sick. Now put the phone on speaker. I don't want to tie up the line for too long."

I smiled-sick or not, she was still the same old Kristy. I punched the speaker phone button.

"You're on speaker." I told the phone.

"I hereby call this meeting to order." Kristy said again.

"Hey Kristy!" and "Hi Kristy!" echoed around the room for a moment.

"Hi, everybody. Any club business?" Kristy asked.

"No."

"Have you all been reading the notebook?"

"Yes."

"Good. We should get off the line now. I don't want to tie it up."

"Okay. Feel better, Kristy!" I said.

"Thanks. See you."

"Bye!" we all called and I hung up the phone.

"Wow…Kristy actually skipped a meeting." Jessi sounded amazed.

"I guess that means I'm president today." Dawn said. "Although Kristy already did the fun things."

Dawn pouted and we all laughed.

"Wait! I thought of one." Dawn exclaimed. We all leaned forward to hear Dawn's announcement but the phone rang.

"Business first." She said. Kristy would've been proud. We set up a job for Jessi with the Perkins and, once we had called them back, we all waited to head what Dawn had to say.

"I move that the Baby Sitters Club go and visit Kristy after the meeting is finished."

"Great idea!" Stacey exclaimed. "I bet my mom could drive us. I mean, we can only take four but…"

"I bet my mom could too." Jessi exclaimed. I handed Jessi the phone, who called and asked. Once her mom had said yes, she handed the phone to Stacey. Stacey's mother also agreed.

"Great." Dawn said, looking quite proud with herself. The phone rang and Mallory reached over and picked it up.

"Baby Sitters Club." She said.

"Alan?" she exclaimed a moment later. She then handed the phone to me.

"Hello?" I asked.

"Hi, Mary Anne. It's, um, it's Alan."

"Hi."

"I was, um, I was wondering if you ever found Kristy today?" he sounded nervous.

"No, actually. But she called a few minutes ago. She's home, sick."

"Really?"

"I'm afraid so." As I was talking with Alan, an idea was coming to mind.

"Um, Alan, we're going to visit Kristy in about ten minutes. Do you want to come with us?"

"You mean it?" Alan sounded suspicious.

"Of course I mean it. Just be at Claudia Kishis' house in ten minutes.

"Great. Thanks, Mary Anne."

"No problem. See you."

I hung up the phone and found everyone staring at me.

"You do realize you just invited Alan Gray to come and visit Kristy, right?" Stacey asked after a moment. I nodded.

"Do you think Kristy will be mad?"

No one said anything for a moment and I began to wonder what I had done.

"Well, us girls will go in first and make sure Kristy looks okay. Then Alan can come in." Claudia said.

"Good idea." Dawn said. "Now, we'd better call our parents and let them know what we're doing. We have to leave in five."

We all quickly called our parents and we were all given permission. As the last person hung up the phone, the doorbell rang downstairs.

"That's probably Alan." I said, standing up. We all gathered our coats and ran down the stairs. An embarrassed looking Alan was standing in the entry way.

We all exchanged hellos and then we went outside and piled into the two cars. I ended up sitting next to Alan.

"Mary Anne, I'm nervous."

"It'll be okay."

I explained to Alan what we would do once we got there and he relaxed ever so slightly. However, he tensed up again when Mrs. McGill pulled into the circular drive and called out,

"We're here."


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter Fifteen**

When Mrs. McGill called out that we were here, I looked at Alan. Honestly, I thought he would a) pass out or b) refuse to leave the safety of his seat belt. However, he took a deep breath and climbed out. He followed all of us to the front door. Claudia rang the bell and Watson Brewer answered. He smiled when he saw us.

"Hello, girls."

"Hi, Mr. Brewer." I said. "We're here to visit Kristy."

"Well, I'm sure she'll appreciate it. You know the way, Mary Anne."

Watson opened the door for us and Alan ducked into the middle of the group. Either Watson didn't see Alan or he did but chose not to say anything. At any rate, we all made it up the stairs.

"Wait here." I told Alan as Stacey knocked on Kristy's closed door.

"Come in." We heard Kristy call and Alan went a shade paler at the sound of her voice. Claudia opened the door and we all piled in, closing the door, leaving Alan alone in the hallway.

"Surprise!" We all called out. Kristy smiled.

"You guys!" She said, sitting up.

"How're you feeling?" I asked as we all piled onto her Queen Size bed.

"I've been better." She said with a smile.

"I imagine. You look awful." Claudia said and Kristy threw a pillow at her. In Claudia's defense, Kristy looked about the same as Logan had a week ago.

"Well, we'd better make you look a little nicer." Stacey said, reaching into her purse and pulling out a brush.

"Why?" Kristy asked, suspiciously.

"Because Alan Gray is waiting outside." Stacey said as she started brushing Kristy's tangled hair.

"Alan Gray?!" Kristy squeaked.

"Yes, Alan Gray." Claudia said, in an "as a matter-of-fact" voice.

"He was worried about you, Kristy." I said. Her face softened.

"Really?"

I nodded, smiling.

"There. That's better." Stacey said. She had pulled Kristy's long hair into a smooth pony-tail.

"Well, we'd better go get Alan. We can't stay too long." Dawn said. We all got off her bed.

"Wait! Do I have any sleep in my eyes?" she asked.  
"No. You're fine." I told her. I went to the door and opened it. I gestured for Alan to come in.

"We'll wait outside." I said, closing the door, leaving Alan and Kristy alone. We heard Alan say in a shaky voice,

"Hi, Kristy."

As hard as we tried, we couldn't hear anything through Kristy's door. I don't think I've ever heard the BSC be that quiet. And I'm sure we must've looked quite silly with all our ears pressed against the door. Luckily, one of us heard Alan say good bye and we all managed to straighten up before Alan opened the door. However, I'm sure we were all blushing. Alan was, too.

"Kristy wants to see you again, Mary Anne." Alan told me.

"Kay."

I went back into Kristy's bedroom and closed the door.

"So, how was it?" I asked, smiling.

"It was nice."

"Nice?"

"Yeah, nice." Kristy was smiling.

"He feels so bad. He thinks I got sick because I went to see him."

"He's probably right." I couldn't help but say.

"I guess. But I don't care. He likes me, Mary Anne!" she almost squealed.

"I'm happy for you Kristy."

Kristy smiled and yawned.

"Well, we'd better get going."

"I understand." Kristy said, sleepily. I walked over and tucked Kristy in.

"I hope you feel better soon." I said as I walked towards the door again.

"Thanks. And thanks for coming, Mary Anne."

"No problem."

"I guess the BSC can get through anything." Kristy said, already dozing off.

"I'm sure of it, Kristy."

With that, I opened the door and together, Alan and the BSC left to go home.

_A/N: And thus, my fellow BSC fans, concludes __**Nurse BSC! **__Thank you so much for reading and reviewing and I hope you enjoyed it._

_~StoryLover 18_


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